For those who plan to celebrate 2020 and those just hoping for its swift end, the year will conclude the same: wet.
Scattered showers and isolated thunderstorms are in the forecast for North Georgia on Thursday evening, according to Channel 2 Action News meteorologist Brad Nitz.
“A wet New Year’s Eve, that seems appropriate for this year,” he said.
By the time the clock strikes midnight, most of the region will be soggy, he said. There will likely be some heavier downpours embedded in the showers, along with the threat of a few thunderstorms as a cold front approaches.
There will also be some dry hours, Nitz said.
“There is rain around, but it’s not a rainout,” he said. “It’s not raining everywhere all the time.”
The front will push through North Georgia on New Year’s Day, bringing the possibility of more widespread rain and gusty winds during the morning hours, he said.
The risk of severe weather remains low, according to Channel 2. The threat is greatest for those south of metro Atlanta on Friday afternoon and those to the east on Friday evening.
“This does not look like it’s shaping up to be a big outbreak of severe weather, but we will watch for that possibility for a few of those storms to become strong to severe,” Nitz said.
Heavy rainfall is possible with some of those thunderstorms that rumble through Friday afternoon, but Nitz said the main risk is damaging wind gusts. Frequent cloud to ground lightning strikes are also possible, he said.
Much of metro Atlanta will get an inch of rainfall before all is said and done, according to Channel 2. Some neighborhoods inside the Perimeter could see up to 2 inches of rain.
Nitz said higher amounts up to 4 inches are expected in northeast Georgia.
The wet weather isn’t likely to dampen outdoor plans Thursday night, as there are no large events planned in metro Atlanta to ring in the new year. Those headed downtown Friday for the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl at Mercedes-Benz Stadium might want to be prepared, however.
The limited-capacity game between Georgia and Cincinnati is set to begin at noon, when the heaviest rain and storms are expected to roll through metro Atlanta, according to Channel 2.
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