North Georgia weather: Cold front brings rain, plunging temperatures Monday

ATLANTA - North Georgia and metro Atlanta will see a quick weather shift as a cold front moves through early Monday, bringing light rain followed by steadily colder air that will settle in through midweek.

Rain early, then clearing

What they're saying:

"A high of 70 degrees in downtown Atlanta — those temperatures are still pretty mild," said FOX 5 Storm Team Meteorologist Laurann Robinson. "But they’re going to be dropping pretty quickly as we go through the day tomorrow."

Cloudy skies and mild conditions will hold overnight as winds turn southerly and increase ahead of the front. "Those winds are gonna start picking up as that front gets closer to us," Robinson said. "While that front gets closer, we’re gonna watch for some early morning rain showers tomorrow."

The rain won’t last long. "That line of showers early tomorrow morning moves through pretty quickly," Robinson explained. "We’re not gonna get a whole lot of rain from that — just some wet roads early tomorrow."

Showers are expected to reach northwest Georgia — including areas like Rome — between 3 and 5 a.m., then move through metro Atlanta by around 4 to 6 a.m. By late morning, the rain will be gone, though clouds may linger through midday before afternoon sunshine returns.

Temperatures fall through the day

Local perspective:

Behind the front, colder air will rush in from the north. "As that clearing settles in, that air is going to continue to fall in from the north," Robinson said. "It’s going to drop our temperatures throughout the day Monday."

Highs in the 50s will occur early in the day. By afternoon, temperatures will fall into the 40s, with gusty winds making it feel colder. "It’s going to feel quite a bit colder — like the 30s across most of North Georgia," Robinson said.

By Monday night, lows will drop into the 20s and 30s, with many locations falling below freezing.

Cold stretch through midweek

What's next:

The colder pattern sticks around Tuesday and Wednesday. "We’re going to see some cold weather settle in," Robinson said. "It’s going to be a little tricky because we’re going to see that sun shining, so it’s going to look nice outside — but that breeze will actually make it feel quite a bit colder."

Daytime highs will remain in the 40s Tuesday, edging back toward the upper 40s to low 50s by Wednesday, with chilly overnight lows continuing.

Robinson says the cold spell extends into the end of the year. "We also want to watch for overnight temperatures to fall below freezing," she said. "We’re gonna have a cold spell ending our 2025 and even into the first couple of days of 2026."

Temperatures will slowly rebound by New Year’s Day, with sunshine and highs in the mid-50s, which is near the seasonal average. Another round of rain could arrive Friday night into Saturday.

DeKalb County warming centers

What you can do:

DeKalb County will open its warming centers Monday-Wednesday, Dec. 29-31, beginning at 6:30 p.m. each night.

The county’s warming center locations include:

• Frontline Response International, 2585 Gresham Rd SE, Atlanta
• St. Vincent de Paul, 2050 C Chamblee Tucker Rd, Chamblee
• Mason Mill Recreation Center, 1340 McConnell Dr, Decatur
• Exchange Park Intergenerational Center, 2771 Columbia Dr, Decatur

All transportation routes begin at Frontline Response Headquarters on Gresham Road. Initial pickups are scheduled to be completed by 7:30 p.m., followed by final sweeps from 7:30 to 10 p.m.

DeKalb County also released a detailed transportation schedule, including stops in North DeKalb, Chamblee, Tucker, Brookhaven, Decatur, Emory, Stone Mountain, Candler Road, Memorial Drive, Wesley Chapel and other communities. Pickups run from 6:05 p.m. through the 7 p.m. hour depending on the route.