WEATHER-TRAFFIC UPDATE: Northside traffic slow as evening commute continues; temps in low 50s

Here's Severe Weather Team 2 Chief Meteorologist Glenn Burns with a look at your Wednesday evening forecast.

ATLANTA FORECAST

Wednesday: High: 53

Wednesday night: Low: 38

Thursday: High: 53

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

The evening commute has increased the volume on Atlanta’s interstates, meaning the Northside is slow and a few crashes are keeping DeKalb slow as well.

An injury crash on Brockett Road near Ga. 78 is backing up DeKalb county's back roads, according to the WSB 24-hour Traffic Center.

Downed tree limbs have been cleared from I-285 South near Flat Shoals Road, but delays still linger, the Traffic Center reported.

A crash in the left lane of I-20 West near I-285 is causing delays back to Panola Road, the TRaffic Center reported.

Downtown drivers can also expect some delays around Mercedes-Benz Stadium for the state high school football championships. Four games were played Tuesday and four more are being played Wednesday after being bumped from the weekend schedule when Atlanta United qualified for the MLS Cup. The last game started at 4:30 and the final game will start at 8 p.m.

After another chilly morning that featured an earthquake, the weather has warmed to a mild 50 degrees Wednesday afternoon, according to Channel 2 Action News.

Many in metro Atlanta got an earlier start than expected when a 4.4 magnitude quake in eastern Tennessee shook them awake about 4:15 a.m. The quake was recorded near Decatur, Tenn., about 130 miles north of Atlanta.

RELATED: Early morning earthquake jolts Atlanta awake

According to Andrew Newman, an assistant professor at Georgia Tech’s School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, earthquakes in the eastern U.S. travel farther because of a solid foundation of rock, making a quake here feel more powerful than one of the same strength on the West Coast.

RELATED: Why Atlanta felt an earthquake that struck in Tennessee

Damage at that magnitude is considered very light, but Channel 2 meteorologist Karen Minton said aftershocks could be felt over the next few weeks or even months.

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After starting out on the cold side, Minton said things will warm up before the sun sets about 5:30 p.m.

“We're going to see a mix of clouds and sun today,” she said. “No rain today. It is going to be fairly light on the wind as well.”

Winds and clouds are expected to increase Thursday into Friday morning ahead of a front that will bring widespread rain to North Georgia, according to Channel 2.

The rain should be “mostly light, but then some embedded areas of heavy rain will begin to pass through,” Minton said. Showers are expected to taper off by Friday evening, but she said some weather models show the rain sticking around through Saturday morning.

“I'm going to keep it in the forecast,” she said. Saturday has a 60 percent chance of rain.

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