Published Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Cold descends on Coweta

By Sarah Fay Campbell

The Times-Herald

Cold weather has arrived in Coweta with a vengeance.

Temperatures Tuesday night/Wednesday morning were in the low 20s. At 7 Wednesday morning, a local bank's thermometer showed a temperature of 21 degrees.

That's a record breaker. According to the National Weather Service, the record low temperature for Nov. 18 at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport is 22 degrees. Wednesday's record was 23 degrees, and tonight's record is 25 degrees. Hartsfield-Jackson is the closest location to Coweta that has accessible climate records.

Temperatures tonight should be a little bit warmer, with a low of 29 forecast by the National Weather Service.

But the unseasonable cold will be back with a bite for Friday's AAAAA playoff game between the Newnan Cougars and Tift County. Gloves, hats and hot chocolate will definitely be on the menu.

The National Weather Service forecasts a low around 21 for Friday night. Temperatures probably won't get that low until well after the game is finished, but hour-by-hour forecasts weren't yet available Wednesday evening.

Though cold, Friday probably won't be a record breaker. The record low for Nov. 21 is 19 degrees.

The cold nights will be accompanied by sunny days.

Today's forecast is for sunny skies with a high near 58, and winds between 5 and 10 mph.

Friday will also be sunny, with a high of 49. But strong winds will make things seem much colder. Sustained winds of 10 to 15 mph are forecast, with gusts of up to 20 mph.

By Friday night, the wind should have died down to about 5 mph.

The weekend will be more of the same. Saturday will be sunny with a high of 55, and a low of 23. Sunday will be sunny with a high near 56 and a low of 31.

According to the National Weather Service, the normal low temperature for this time of year is 42 degrees. The lowest normal temperature, based on the years of 1971 to 2000, is 33 degrees, in mid January.