Hurricane Sandy won’t have much impact on metro Atlanta’s weather as the storm churns its way northward off the East Coast, but it could have a huge effect on Saturday’s big Georgia-Florida football game in Jacksonville.
While forecasters say the hurricane will not make landfall along the Florida and Georgia coast, sustained winds of 25 to 30 mph are possible in the Jacksonville area on Friday and Saturday, with gusts up to 45 mph.
There’s also a 30 percent chance of rain in Jacksonville on Saturday. The wind and rain could have a major impact the passing and kicking games as the 7-0 Gators take on the 6-1 Bulldogs.
The National Weather Service early Thursday issued a tropical storm watch for Florida’s Atlantic coast, including the Jacksonville area. A tropical storm warning was posted for the offshore areas along Florida’s east coast.
At 5 a.m. Thursday, Sandy was a Category 2 hurricane, centered over the northeastern coast of Cuba with sustained winds of 105 mph.
Channel 2 Action News meteorologist Karen Minton is predicting a mostly dry weekend for metro Atlanta, with only a slight chance of scattered showers.
A weekend cold front approaching from the west will send metro temperatures plummeting by early next week, Minton said.
Highs will be in the upper 70s Thursday and Friday, low 70s Saturday and low 60s on Sunday, with lows in the 50s.
On Monday, highs will only reach the upper 50s before dropping into the mid-30s Monday night.
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