The National Weather Service is warning that a strong line of storms moving into the Chattanooga area on Monday could bring the possibility of tornadoes and large hail.
In advance of the storm, some schools were canceling evening activities.
Hamilton County Schools will have no evening activities. After-school childcare for school-age children will continue to operate until 6 p.m., but parents are encouraged to pick up their children earlier than 6 p.m. if possible.
Catoosa County Schools canceled evening activities.
All Georgia Northwestern Technical College campuses will be closing at 6 p.m. "due to severe weather." All evening classes and activities are canceled.
East Ridge officials said the evening events scheduled for Camp Jordan Park and the East Ridge Community Center have been cancelled. Both facilities will close at 5 p.m. Also the East Ridge Library will close at 6 pm.
East Ridge officials said, "The weather event is schedule to be in the East Ridge area around 7-9 p.m. We are urging all residents to please stay indoors during this time as well as take any safety precautions (charging phones, batteries, flashlights, weather radios, etc). For more information, watch the local news stations for up-to-the-minute information as well as radio stations. Please stay safe."
The storm will cause temperatures to drop on Tuesday and Wednesday into the 30s.
Here is the special weather statement:
THUNDERSTORMS EXPECTED LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING ACROSS THE PLATEAU, PARTS OF THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN TENNESSEE VALLEY, AND SOUTHWEST NORTH CAROLINA... ...RAIN CHANGING TO SNOW SHOWERS ACROSS THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS TUESDAY NIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY NIGHT...
A STRONG STORM SYSTEM WILL MOVE ACROSS THE SOUTHERN APPALACHIAN REGION TODAY WITH SOUTHERLY WINDS PULLING WARM, MOIST AND UNSTABLE AIR INTO THE TENNESSEE VALLEY. SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP OVER MIDDLE TENNESSEE AND NORTHERN ALABAMA THIS AFTERNOON AND THEN MOVE INTO THE PLATEAU, SOUTHEAST AND CENTRAL SECTIONS OF THE TENNESSEE VALLEY, AND SOUTHWEST NORTH CAROLINA THIS EVENING.
THE MAIN THREAT BEING TORNADOES, DAMAGING WINDS, AND HAIL. THERE IS A POTENTIAL OF ISOLATED STRONG TORNADOES ACROSS THE SOUTHERN PLATEAU AND SOUTHEAST TENNESSEE. BESIDES THE POTENTIAL OF SEVERE STORMS, THE STRONG LOW-LEVEL WINDS MAY PRODUCE A MOUNTAIN WAVE HIGH WIND EVENT ACROSS THE MOUNTAINS AND ADJACENT FOOTHILLS THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. SOUTHERLY WINDS OF 15 TO 30 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 40 MPH POSSIBLE. A COLD FRONT WILL MOVE ACROSS THE TENNESSEE VALLEY AND SOUTHERN APPALACHIANS TUESDAY WITH COLDER AIR SPILLING INTO THE REGION. FOR TUESDAY NIGHT
THROUGH WEDNESDAY NIGHT, THE COLDER AIR WILL MOVE INTO THE SOUTHERN APPALACHIANS WITH THE RAIN CHANGING TO SNOW SHOWERS ACROSS THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS, GENERALLY ABOVE 2500 FEET. SNOW ACCUMULATIONS ARE POSSIBLE ACROSS THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS, SUCH AS THE SMOKY MOUNTAINS AND HIGH KNOB, VIRGINIA.
ANYONE PLANNING ON VENTURING OUT ACROSS THE HIGHER TERRAIN, SUCH AS HIKERS, SHOULD PLAN FOR WINTRY CONDITIONS WITH TEMPERATURES DROPPING INTO THE UPPER TEENS AND MIDDLE 20S, WINDY CONDITIONS, AND SNOW PACKED AND ICY TRAILS. BEST TO DELAY VENTURING OUT ACROSS THE MOUNTAINOUS AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN APPALACHIANS. PLEASE STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO AND OTHER LOCAL MEDIA FOR FURTHER DETAILS OR UPDATES.
With the threat of strong storms affecting the Chattanooga area later Monday and through the night, EPB encourages its customers to download the myEPB App as another way to report and stay aware of outages, as well as manage their EPB Electric Power accounts.
The myEPB App is available for download on iOS and Android mobile devices, at no charge, at www.epb.com/home-store/apps. It puts advanced mobile technology in the palm of customers’ hands with access to real-time smart grid data about outages, restoration efforts, energy use, billing estimates and more. Click here for additional information.
In the event of severe weather affecting customers, information will also be available at epb.com and the EPB of Chattanooga Facebook and Twitter pages.