FRIDAY’S WEATHER-TRAFFIC: Drier conditions take hold for the weekend

North Georgia won’t have to deal with as much rain Friday as drier and sunnier conditions take hold.

Channel 2 Action News meteorologist Brian Monahan said there is much less rain in the forecast for the next couple of days and into the start of next week.

“Now that doesn’t mean there’s not going to be storms,” he said. “There will be some showers and storms around, but compared to what we've seen the last few days where we've all gotten hit with multiple rounds of rain each day, it is much quieter today, tomorrow and into the weekend.”

Rain chances will stay low at about 30%, according to Channel 2.

Most of the rain Friday should be confined to the afternoon. Isolated thunderstorms are expected later, and some of them could be on the strong side, Monahan said.

“More of us than not will stay dry through the afternoon,” he said.

A few raindrops are falling in northwest Georgia and on the Southside on Friday morning, but there is not much in the way of organized shower activity. Most are starting the day dry and partly cloudy, Monahan said.

If the clouds cooperate, North Georgia should be in for a spectacular sunrise. A massive plume of dust from the Sahara Desert has finally arrived and is sitting across the Southeast. Monahan said it should make for vivid sunrises and sunsets the next few days.

It is already warm with temperatures near 70 degrees, and the cloud cover will help North Georgia to warm up quickly Friday, he said. Atlanta is headed for a projected high of 85 degrees.

“But with the humidity, it’s going to feel like close to 90 degrees for a high this afternoon,” Monahan said.

It will feel even warmer this weekend. Afternoon highs Saturday and Sunday will near 90 degrees, according to Channel 2.

There are no early delays on metro Atlanta interstates Friday morning, according to the WSB 24-hour Traffic Center.

North of the city is an entirely different story. A crash on I-75 North has all lanes blocked at times north of Dalton, the Traffic Center reported.

Drivers headed toward Chattanooga can take U.S. 41 to avoid the backups.

» For a detailed forecast, visit The Atlanta Journal-Constitution weather page.

» For updated traffic information, listen to News 95.5 and AM 750 WSB and follow @ajcwsbtraffic on Twitter. 

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