Easter Sunday will be sunny and cooler, but the weekend will begin with wet and stormy weather Friday night.
Some of those storms could be severe, particularly in the northwest corner of the state.
Isolated severe thunderstorms “can be expected from Summerville to Chatsworth and north after 9 p.m.,” the National Weather Service warned, adding that isolated severe storms will be possible later in the night north of a line from Franklin to Gainesville, an area that includes much of metro Atlanta.
Channel 2 meteorologist Karen Minton said the storms should begin moving into metro Atlanta between 10 p.m. and midnight.
The chance of rain Friday night is 70 percent, Minton said. Large hail and damaging winds will be the greatest threats from the storms, forecasters said.
After an expected high in the low 80s on Friday, Minton is forecasting cooler weather for the weekend.
Saturday will be breezy but dry, with morning lows in the low 50s and afternoon highs in the mid-60s. Easter Sunday should be mostly sunny, with highs again in the mid-60s. Temperatures will be around 43 degrees at sunrise Sunday, which comes at 7:20 a.m.
»Check the full forecast and track changes
Atlanta’s normal high for the first week of April is 70, the normal low 48.
Friday's overnight rain should bring some temporary relief for allergy sufferers. Atlanta's pollen count Friday of 2,362 particles of pollen per cubic meter of air was the highest count so far this season, climbing slightly from Thursday's count of 2,265.
Motorists get a break from weekend roadwork
With Easter and Spring Break bringing heavier traffic to Georgia’s interstates, the Georgia Department of Transportation is canceling construction-related lane closures for the following two weekends. The restrictions will be in place from midnight Friday through 5 a.m. Monday and again from 10 p.m. April 10 through 5 a.m. April 13.
“We urge motorists to exercise caution as crews may still be working in proximity to highways,” said Jeff Baker, director of construction for GDOT.
»Click here for traffic updates throughout the weekend
Invasion of the volleyball players
Events this weekend include the Big South National Qualifier, which will bring more than 200 college volleyball teams from across the country to the Georgia World Congress Center through Sunday.
Also downtown, the Hawks take on Brooklyn at 7:30 p.m. Saturday.
On Sunday, Stone Mountain Park hosts Easter sunrise services at 7 a.m. at the top of the mountain and on Memorial Lawn at the base of the mountain.
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