Hang on, sunshine and warmer temperatures are on the way.

After enduring bone-chilling temperatures and freezing rain, area residents will have a couple more days of potentially nasty weather - mainly a chance for rain.

But by Sunday, according to the National Weather Service in Peachtree City, skies should be mostly sunny and the mercury should hit the upper 40s. That weather should remain another day, with the high reaching 50.

It'll be a nice reprieve after a week that brought record cold and some frightful weather late Wednesday and early Thursday.

Col. Jeff Strickland of the Hall County Sheriff's Office said Thursday that deputies had worked 101 weather-related wrecks between 6 p.m. Wednesday and 7 a.m. Thursday.

Eighteen of the wrecks involved injuries, none serious, Strickland said.

A couple of particular trouble spots were Roy Park and Yellow Creek roads.

A mix of rain, sleet and freezing rain began falling in Hall County shortly after dark Wednesday night.

About 9 p.m. Wednesday, traffic was rerouted off Interstate 985 at Mile Marker 16 (or Exit 17) because of an accident, according to the Georgia State Patrol.

A winter weather advisory for Northeast Georgia, issued by the National Weather Service, ended at 10 a.m. Thursday.

As a result of the ice, area school systems, including Gainesville and Hall County, closed Thursday.

Northwest Georgia and metro Atlanta "took the brunt of this winter weather event," said Teri Pope, spokeswoman for the Georgia Department of Transportation's Gainesville-based District 1.

"Work began in Forsyth and Dawson (counties) and slowly moved west," she said.

Crews stayed busy in Northeast Georgia, logging 470 man hours and using about 100 tons of materials, said David Spear, DOT spokesman.

All 40 available spreaders in the district were in operation.

They "finished working shortly after daybreak in Northeast Georgia," Pope said.

Today's high is expected to hit 50, with partly cloudy skies in the outlook. Rain is expected in the forecast tonight, with a low dropping to 27 Saturday night.

Getting closer to Christmas, rain could return on Tuesday, and Wednesday should but sunny but windy, with a high near 46.