Your Easter Sunday services and events may have some of those proverbially promised “April showers” that bring flowers, dampening celebrations but bringing much-needed rain.
A cold front moved into northwest Georgia overnight, bringing with it scattered showers that could linger through early afternoon, according to the National Weather Service.
The overnight storms brought rain to the area, but the threat for severe weather remains low overall.
“Sunrise services will be in jeopardy because the rain will move in early in the day,” Channel 2 Action News meteorologist Eboni Deon said.
That wet weather is expected to clear out shortly after lunch, leaving cooler temperatures in place for the remainder of the weekend.
“We actually need this rain, so we’ll take it on this Easter Sunday,” Deon said.
Temps are expected to only reach about 70 degrees in Atlanta as North Georgia starts drying up around noon, according to the latest forecast. By 2 p.m. any lingering rain likely will have moved east.
Credit: Jenni Girtman
Credit: Jenni Girtman
The rain could put a damper on Easter plans, such as religious services and early egg hunts.
Stone Mountain Park held its annual Easter sunrise service after promising congregants Saturday the mass would take place as scheduled, “rain or shine.”
Those who journeyed to the top of the mountain early Sunday were urged to take the cable car because the overnight rain made the trail slippery.
Most of metro Atlanta will see up to an inch of rain. Rainfall amounts could reach up to 1½ inches in areas north of I-85, while most other areas will end up with as much as three-quarters of an inch.
Georgia is facing its most significant drought since 2011–2012, making the Easter weekend showers a necessity.
In the seven-month span from Sept. 1 to April 1, Atlanta got just over 17 inches of rain. That’s just over 12 inches below average, according to the NWS. It’s also the lowest amount of rainfall during that period recorded in more than 100 years, the agency said.
“With little relief expected from this weekend’s rain, the trend remains concerning as we enter the warmer spring months,” the Weather Service said.
Winter typically serves as a “recharge season,” but officials said this last season failed to put a dent in rainfall deficits. Macon and Columbus have also set records for the driest September-to-April period.
The Weather Service said three months of above-normal rainfall are required to end a drought. That would mean 1 to 1½ inches of rain every week would be needed to keep the drought from getting worse.
Beyond Sunday, drier conditions will return. Temperatures will cap in the low to mid-70s until Friday, when a warm-up begins again.
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