SCHOOL CLOSINGS:
- Buford City School will delay opening two hours.
- Forsyth County schools are closed today. Twelve-month employees should report when conditions permit.
- UPDATED: City of Gainesville Red Rabbit and Dial-A-Ride service delayed until noon.
- Gainesville City Schools are closed Thursday.
- Gainesville State College will delay opening until 10 a.m. on both the Gainesville and Oconee campuses.
- Habersham County government will open at 10 a.m.
- Habersham County schools are closed Thursday.
- Hall County Schools are closed today. Twelve-month employees should report at 11 a.m.
- Lakeview Academy is closed Thursday.
- Lanier Technical College will delay opening until 10 a.m.
- Lumpkin County schools are closed Thursday. Twelve-month employees report at 11 a.m.
- North Georgia College & State University will delay opening until 10 a.m.
- Riverside Military Academy will open at 10 a.m. Faculty and staff should report at 9:30 a.m.
- Towns County schools are closed Thursday.
- Truett-McConnell College will delay opening until 10 a.m.
- White County schools are closed Thursday.
- Union County schools are closed Thursday.
- Gainesville First United Methodist Church will open at 10 a.m.
- UPDATED: Longstreet Clinic says some departments will open at 10 a.m. Patients should call first.
The Hall County Sheriff’s Office has worked 101 weather-related wrecks since 6 p.m. Wednesday, spokesman Col. Jeff Strickland said this morning. Eighteen of the wrecks involved injuries, none serious, and 95 of them occurred before 6 a.m., Strickland said. "The major thoroughfares appear to be clear, but there are still a number of icy patches," he 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 in Peachtree City, ended at 10 a.m. The good news is temperatures are expected to rise into the upper 40s today, albeit under rainy skies. 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 District 1, logging 470 manhours and using about 50 tons of materials with an estimated cost of $114,000. All 40 available spreaders in the district were in operation. They "finished working shortly after daybreak in Northeast Georgia," Pope said. The DOT is still urging caution on bridges. "We are very thankful for daylight and the rising temperatures," Pope said. "Sleet and freezing rain have caused most roadways and especially elevated structures, such as bridges and overpasses, to ice over during the night." Conditions are "expected to remain treacherous through most, if not all, of the morning commute hour," she said.