Fort Wayne, Ind. — Rain showers moving through Wednesday morning will create slick roads and reduced visibility during the commute, followed by a sharp cooldown that could bring damaging frost by early Saturday morning. The most immediate impacts hit between 7 a.m. and 12 p.m. Wednesday across Fort Wayne, South Bend, Elkhart, Warsaw and Wabash.
According to the National Weather Service in Northern Indiana, scattered showers will continue through the morning with the highest coverage along and south of US-24, while a colder pattern settles in through the weekend with multiple nights of frost and freeze potential.
Rainfall will quickly coat roadways, mixing with oil buildup to create slippery conditions within minutes, especially on city streets and highway ramps in Fort Wayne and Elkhart. This is part of a broader system bringing cooler air into the Great Lakes, setting the stage for overnight temperature drops into the upper 20s and low 30s by early Saturday.
Cold air will settle into low-lying and rural areas, including fields and valleys near South Bend and Warsaw, where frost may form rapidly and damage sensitive vegetation. Patchy fog could also develop in these areas before sunrise, briefly lowering visibility for early drivers.
Slow down on wet roads Wednesday morning and cover or bring in sensitive plants Friday night.
The most critical frost window is 2 a.m. to 7 a.m. Saturday, when temperatures fall below freezing and plant damage is most likely.
