WASHINGTON - Cold weather has killed half the blossoms on Washington's famous cherry trees just as they were getting to the peak of their bloom.

National Park Service officials held a press conference on Friday to describe the damage.

The National Weather Service meteorologist Kevin Witt says temperatures in the area dipped to 26 on Tuesday, 22 on Wednesday and 24 on Thursday.

Park Service spokesman Mike Litterst had warned before the cold snap that 24 degree temperatures could kill as much as 90 percent of the blossoms.

Peak bloom is defined as the day when 70 percent of the Yoshino cherry trees around the city's Tidal Basin are blossoming.