The National Weather Service has issued a Hazardous Weather Outlook for multiple Western North Carolina counties Wednesday, Jan. 7, and Thursday, Jan. 8.
“Wednesday, cold wave likely,” reads a passage from the NWS’s report. “An arctic airmass will settle Southward across the region starting Wednesday and persist into Friday. Temperatures will likely run 10 to 20 degrees below climate normals.
“Thursday, wind chill likely. The combination of very cold temperatures and gusty Northwest winds will result in dangerous wind chill values Wednesday night through Thursday morning across the mountains, adjacent foothills and across the Interstate 40 corridor.”
Wednesday during the day, temperatures are expected to reach a high of 28 degrees, with Northwest winds from 11-18 mph. Wednesday night is expected to be clear and blustery, with a low around 6 degrees — the windchill factor making those temperatures feel even lower.
Thursday’s high is predicted to be 27 degrees, with a low of 18. On Friday, WNC will warm up (though only slightly), with a high of 37 degrees and a low of 20. Sunshine and clear skies are expected through Saturday, with no predicted chance of precipitation for snowfall this week.
Counties affected by the cold spell are Alexander, Iredell, Davie, Madison, Swain, Haywood, Buncombe, Catawba, Rowan, Graham, Jackson, Macon, Transylvania, Henderson, Cleveland, Lincoln, Greater Caldwell, Greater Burke, Eastern McDowell, Rutherford mountains, Greater Rutherford, Polk mountains, Eastern Polk, Oconee Mountains and Rabun and Habersham in Georgia.
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