The National Weather Service has issued a winter storm watch starting Friday morning as North Georgia and metro Atlanta brace for snow.
“Expect significant accumulations of snow, sleet and freezing rain that will lead to hazardous travel conditions,” the agency warned Wednesday morning.
The winter storm watch will be in effect from 7 a.m. Friday to 7 a.m. Saturday.
North Georgia is projected to get at least 4 inches of snow Friday, according to Channel 2 Action News meteorologist Brian Monahan. In higher elevations, where below-freezing temperatures will linger, the snowfall could reach or exceed 6 inches, the NWS predicts.
Closer to the city, areas north of I-20 could see between 2 and 3 inches of snowfall, Monahan said. Those to the south are expected to get more of a wintry mix of snow and freezing rain with significant ice accumulations.
The timing of the snow’s arrival is still fluctuating. Monahan said flurries should start Friday morning and snowfall could intensify as the day wears on. Highs then are expected to stay around 34 degrees, about 6 to 10 degrees lower than Wednesday and Thursday’s predicted high temps.
The NWS stressed residents should not focus on where exactly snow will turn to slushy rain because the forecast will be fine-tuned over the next couple of days.
“Plan on being at your house, your safe space on Friday morning, and plan to stay there,” WSB traffic reporter Mike Shields said.
In hopes of avoiding the calamity of 2014’s “Snowpocalypse,” which stranded motorists and disrupted life in Atlanta, the state and local governments are trying to prepare now. More than 1,000 traffic crashes were reported during that storm, which brought only 2.6 inches of snow.
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