The coldest Arctic blast since last winter sent temperatures plunging into the mid-20s across metro Atlanta early Tuesday, causing isolated black ice on the roads. Here’s what you can expect as you hit the roads to work and school.
Brisk winds dry most of the roads, but send the wind chill plummeting: Actual air temperatures reported at 6 a.m. included 23 in Dallas and Cartersville, 24 in Dunwoody, Alpharetta and Marietta and 26 in Peachtree City and at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport.
But with the wind factored in, those temperatures felt as low as 11 in Chamblee, 13 at the airport and 15 in Marietta.
In the mountains, Blairsville reported 19 degrees at 6 a.m. The mountain counties were under a wind chill advisory for chills of 5 degrees or lower until 11 a.m.
A few icy patches reported on the roads: Most metro roads were dry early Tuesday, but the WSB 24-hour Traffic Center reported icing before daybreak on I-20 westbound at Salem Road, on I-285 eastbound at Ashford Dunwoody Road and on U.S. 78 westbound at Hugh Howell Road.
Another early trouble spot on the interstates involved a 5 a.m. vehicle fire on I-285 at Moreland Avenue. All northbound lanes of the Perimeter were shut down for nearly an hour as crews put out the fire and treated the ice that formed on the interstate from the water used to douse the flames. All lanes reopened about 5:50 a.m.
Attempt to stay warm leads to house fire: DeKalb County firefighters battled a predawn blaze Tuesday at a home on To-Lani Drive.
“We had some residents who had moved in and did not have their power and gas turned on yet,” DeKalb fire Chief Doug Brown told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
“They were trying to keep warm with a fire in a fireplace,” Brown said. “We’re not really sure how it got out of the fire box, but it did get into the walls around the fireplace and did some pretty good damage to the living room area.”
No injuries were reported.
What's next? Channel 2 meteorologist Karen Minton said temperatures will only rebound into the mid-30s Tuesday afternoon before falling into the low 20s by early Wednesday.
Wednesday’s high will be a little warmer, with highs reaching the mid-40s, Minton said.
The warming trend will continue Thursday and Friday, with afternoon highs in the mid-50s after morning lows in the low to mid-30s.
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