Blast of cold air to sink temperatures across the Deep South

ATLANTA – Forecasters say a mix of sleet and freezing rain could coat highways in parts of north Georgia as an arctic blast sinks temperatures below freezing in parts of Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana.

The north Georgia mountains could see light freezing rain by Sunday morning. The National Weather Service says accumulations of freezing rain are expected to be light — up to .15 of an inch (.38 of a centimetre) in some spots.

In Alabama, cold air behind a front sweeping across the region will drop low temperatures early Saturday morning to around 24 degrees (minus 4.4 Celsius) in Huntsville; and 26 degrees (minus 3.3 Celsius) in Birmingham.

Low temperatures Friday night are expected to drop just below freezing in places such as Jackson, Mississippi; and Monroe, Louisiana.