Rains soaked Gainesville and Hall County, felling at least one tree and causing vehicles to hydroplane.

But no thunderstorm or flood warnings were issued in the area Wednesday as Gainesville and Hall absorbed between 1.75 and 2.25 inches of precipitation, said Robert Garcia, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Peachtree City.

"That's a good amount of rain," Garcia said. "It seems like the creeks and streams are responding."

The storm, which intensified around midday, caused several traffic and roads issues, officers reported.

A small amount of water moved over Lakeview Drive near a culvert and briefly flooded the roadway, said officer Kevin Holbrook, spokesman for Gainesville Police Department.

"It was still passable," he said.

Additionally, mud and dirt runoff from a construction site off Dawsonville Highway caused brief traffic problems at Beechwood Boulevard.

City work crews helped clear the roads. Neither problem impacted traffic for very long, Holbrook said.

In Hall County, three weather-related wrecks happened on Interstate 985 as a result of vehicles hydroplaning on pools of rainwater, said Col. Jeff Strickland, spokesman for the Sheriff's Office.

The accidents happened between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. between exits 8 and 16. No injuries were reported, though one of the vehicles involved ended up sliding into trees off the highway, Strickland said.

In other incidents, a downed tree at Old Cornelia Highway blocked part of the road for a short period of time. County workers cut up the tree and cleared the scene.

A 5:45 p.m. wreck involving a vehicle striking a utility pole on Gillsville Highway caused minor injuries and a major traffic tie-up. The road was shut down for more than an hour.

Forecasters expected the skies would clear overnight and give way to colder temperatures as the front moved through the region.

"It is a relative cold front. Temperatures might dip a little bit, but it's nothing huge," Garcia said.

He expected today's lows to register in the upper 40s and highs in the lower 50s for Hall County.

More showers, wind and clouds are possible tonight with Friday temperatures returning to the upper 50s and increasing over the weekend, Garcia said.

Lake Lanier water levels are reflecting the positive effects of the soaking rain. The lake was at 1071.04 feet above sea level Tuesday afternoon, a measurement right at the summer full pool of 1,071 feet.

The Wednesday recording was a half a foot higher than recorded Sunday following Saturday's all-day rain.

Winter full pool, which begins Oct. 1 and lasts until April 30, is 1,070.