Governor Andy Beshear has declared this week as Winter Weather Awareness Week in Kentucky.

The goal is to know the risks and be prepared now before the bad weather gets bad.

Christy Dutton talked to a Kentucky weather expert to find out more.

This time of year, many of us dream of walking in a winter wonderland, but we know that winter in Kentucky can be a lot different from that.

Joining us now is John Gordon, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Louisville.

John, do we have any idea of what kind of winter to expect here in Kentucky?

Hi, Christy.

Good to see you.

Yeah, I mean, I think we're have a very up and down winter.

A lot of periods of warmth and then surrounded by cold.

So this year I'm kind of worried about cold season, flu season, because the temperatures will be up and down throughout the whole winter as there's a lot of cold air up to the north and there's a lot of warm air to the south.

And we're always in that transition zone, darn it.

That's right.

And so you talk about, you know, some of the health effects with the flu.

Remember, last year around this time, we had that polar plunge, that cold snap.

And so we're also talking about the effects of extreme temperatures and ice storms and even tornadoes.

Right.

That we could see all in the winter months.

Yeah, absolutely.

That's right.

The Deep South, mainly south of Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, that's going to have a lot of active severe weather this year.

And as some of that warm air comes north, it will put it right on the doorsteps of the Kentucky.

Meanwhile, there's a lot of cold up to our north, so there'll be times when that dreaded S-word comes down into the commonwealth right.

Okay.

So we want to be prepared for everything.

What are some things that we need to do to be ready for whatever winter throws at us.

Folks?

Today's the day to plan to have your little safety kit.

Remember, ice and snow.

Take it slow.

I mean, let's say we have that event that Christy just mentioned just before Christmas.

There were people on I 71 for 15 hours to try to go 50 miles.

Okay.

So you want to have a kit that has maybe flashlights and battery, sees some nonperishable food, make sure your wiper blades you have a full tank of gas.

You know, you do that check.

We have a good oil change and your lights are good.

All those types of things pay off enormously in dividends.

That's right.

And with winter weather often comes power outages.

So a lot of people pull out the generators.

But that also brings up some more concerns.

Right.

What do we need to know about that?

Oh, my gosh.

Yeah.

Every year, folks do not ever put your grill, your generator in your house.

Carbon monoxide is odorless and next thing you know, you're in serious trouble.

Don't do that.

It's okay to have a generator or make sure it's hooked up properly.

Make sure there's proper ventilation.

Don't do it yourself by the Three Stooges.

Know what you're doing and use some common sense.

And that's a great thing to have.

But not at the cost of safety.

All right.

Well, we will stay winter, winter weather aware.

Thank you so much for your time, John.

Thank you, Christy.

Bye bye.