Freezing rain advisory includes parts of metro Atlanta

A winter storm watch is no longer in effect early Monday for several north Georgia counties. Instead, a “freezing rain advisory” has been issued by the National Weather Service.

The new advisory will be in effect from 1 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday, according to the NWS. Affected areas include northeast and north central Georgia. Gwinnett, Forsyth, Hall and Cherokee counties are included, but warming temperatures should limit the impact in the metro Atlanta area.

There is no threat of winter precipitation today, Channel 2 Action News meteorologist Brian Monahan said, adding only a small amount of ice — if any at all — is possible overnight and into Monday morning.

Monahan said thickening clouds and temperatures dipping into the 30s or even 20s Sunday night will set the stage for the possibility of a light wintry mix of showers, freezing rain and sleet, particularly in the northeast suburbs like Gwinnett and Hall counties before dawn Monday. But Monahan emphasized that widespread freezing rain is not expected, but instead a chance of up to a quarter-inch of ice accumulation is expected only in isolated spots in northeast metro Atlanta areas early Monday morning.

As for the timeline, he said the potential for wintry mix in the northeast suburbs begins before dawn, so before 6 a.m.

and while Cobb, DeKalb and north Fulton county areas are not in the advisory area, these areas could start the day with a brief freezing drizzle before switching over to just plain rain, according to WSB.

Warmer air, he said, will move in and by Monday afternoon, the threat of freezing rain will be lifted, and the wet stuff will just be just plain rain.

The Georgia Department of ‍Transportation said Sunday morning they have rolled out 16 brine trucks in metro Atlanta and northern Georgia counties. Snow and ice removal teams will resume shifts beginning at 7 p.m. today and will work into Monday morning.

Most metro Atlanta school districts do not have classes Monday in observance of Presidents Day, but click here for an up-to-date list of any closings.