Cold, windy week in store for metro Atlanta

ATLANTA — Channel 2 Action News crews found people bundled up against the blustery winds that whipped through metro Atlanta Sunday.

“On Monday and Tuesday, expect stronger winds with gusts of 30 to 35 miles per hour possible, and that blows in some really cold air,” Channel 2 meteorologist Brad Nitz said.

The weather will be breezier and colder into next week with highs dipping into the upper 50s and nighttime lows in the mid to upper 30s, Nitz said.

He said residents in the north Georgia mountain could see snowfall as early as Monday, but there are no signs of snow landing in the metro area.

The nippy conditions didn't stop hundreds of participants from gathering at Centennial Olympic Park for the Atlanta Partnership Walk/Run.

The event, which is part of a global effort to end poverty, kicked off at 7 a.m. Cyclist Ken Higgins said he didn't let the elements distract him from his goal.

"The cold didn't bother me. Cold didn't bother us at all. But the course is pretty tough for us; A lot of hills; A lot of potholes," he told Channel 2's Sophia Choi.

"It took a little bit more time to get warmed up, but one you get running, you don't really notice it," added Jeff Rumbaugh.

While Georgians brace for the cool weather, much of the Eastern seaboard's eyes are on Hurricane Sandy.

Forecasters said Sandy could become a “super storm” as it merges with an Arctic jet stream, making it unlike anything seen on the eastern seaboard in decades.

On Sunday, the East Coast scrambled to prepare for torrential rains, high winds, flooding, power outages and heavy snow. Tens of millions of people in the eastern third of the U.S. in the path of the unprecedented freak storm had hours Sunday to prepare for the first raindrops that were expected later in the day, to be followed over the next few days by sheets of rain, high winds and even heavy snow, according to the Associated Press.

The Atlanta Journal Constitution contributed to this report.

WSBTV