Southeast Texas' outlook for next week's winter storm continues to worsen, with a growing likelihood of a deep freeze and substantial wintry precipitation, snow and sleet in the Houston area. Space City Weather's Eric Berger published an atypical afternoon report on Friday warning of an "increasingly likely" and drastic mix of hard freeze and snowy conditions expected in Southeast Texas early next week.

This post provides an update on our expectations for the winter storm next week, which is now increasingly likely to bring a hard freeze and snow to Houston. The period from Monday night

As southeast Texas awaits freezing weather in the next week, local transportation agencies say they are keeping a close eye on the forecast.The TxDOT Houston office says it is getting continual updates from the National Weather Service as we head into the weekend.

Houston officials are preparing for severe cold weather expected to hit the region Sunday night, with Mayor John Whitmire announcing the activation of warming centers across the city to protect vulnerable residents.