Georgia sees coldest Christmas in 33 years

It wasn't quite a white Christmas for Georgia, but not for lack of trying.

Georgia saw its coldest temperatures from the arctic blast Saturday morning, with some areas seeing temperatures in the single digits. On Sunday morning Augusta hit 16 degrees, Atlanta and Athens saw 18, while Savannah's low was a relatively balmy 21.

It didn't break the record for coldest Christmas, although in many areas wind chills may make it feel that way. It's probably in the top five, behind the Christmas of 1989 and the Christmas cold wave of 1983, which still holds the record for most of the country.

Tens of thousands were without power over the weekend, with thousands spending Christmas Eve without electricity. Georgia Power said they should have power restored to all their customers by Sunday afternoon at the latest. According to Georgia EMC, as of 5 p.m. only 282 locations remained without power.

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Nationwide, the arctic blast has slammed the United States with dangerously cold temperatures and heavy snow, fatal car crashes, thousands of canceled flights and millions at risk for power outages. The National Weather Service on Friday said its warnings and advisories covered about 200 million people – "one of the greatest extents of winter weather warnings and advisories ever,” forecasters said.

Nationwide, officials have attributed at least 18 deaths to the storm as of Sunday morning.

And we're not done yet. Forecasters expect the huge mass of cold air blanketing the country to continue bringing freezing temperatures into next week.

"Wind chills will still bottom out in the 20s and low 30s Monday and Tuesday morning for most locations in the South outside of south Florida," a Friday forecast says.

Global warming:Tempted to joke about global warming amid the freezing cold? Here's what experts say about that.

Flight delays, cancelations on Christmas Day

If you're one of the 112 million people who were planning to travel more than 50 miles for the holidays, as predicted by AAA, check your flights. Thousands of flight delays and cancellations are still in effect.

FlightAware, an online tracker, reported Sunday as of 5:00 p.m. ET, almost 13,000 delays and over 5,600 cancellations for flights within, into or out of the U.S.

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FlightAware's "Misery Map" showed over 900 delays and over 200 cancellations seen between 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. ET Sunday – with Denver experiencing the highest number of flight delays and cancellations.

Friday saw even more flights impacted – with FlightAware reporting a total of more than 11,500 U.S. flight delays and over 5,900 U.S. flight cancellations.

The National Weather Service warned of whiteout conditions on roads in the central and eastern U.S. where blizzards occur.

"Traveling in these conditions will be extremely dangerous, to at times impossible," the National Weather Service said. "You risk becoming stranded and more vulnerable to the bitterly cold weather."

Atlanta, Athens weather radar, Monday forecast

Watches and warnings in effect

• The National Weather Service Peachtree, GA has issued no watches or warnings but did warn residents the expected cold front will bring very cold temperatures "by local standards" to the area over the holiday weekend.

Forecast:

• Tonight: Clear, with a low around 19. Northwest wind 5 to 10 mph.

• Monday:

• Partly sunny, with a high near 39. West wind around 5 mph becoming calm in the afternoon.

Augusta weather radar, Monday forecast

Watches and warnings in effect

• The National Weather Service Columbia, SC has issued no watches or warnings but did warn residents the expected cold front will bring very cold temperatures "by local standards" to the area over the holiday weekend.

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Forecast:

• Tonight: Mostly clear, with a low around 19. West wind around 5 mph becoming calm after midnight.

• Monday: Sunny, with a high near 44. Calm wind.

Savannah weather radar, Monday forecast

Watches and warnings in effect

• Aside from a wind chill advisory, the National Weather Service Charleston, SC has issued no watches or warnings but did warn residents the expected cold front will bring very cold temperatures "by local standards" to the area over the holiday weekend.

Frozen holiday:Will Savannah see a white Christmas? It'll be cold enough

Forecast:

• Tonight: Clear, with a low around 21. West wind 5 to 7 mph becoming calm in the evening.

• Monday: Sunny, with a high near 46. Calm wind becoming northwest around 5 mph.

Contributors: Joel Shannon, Thao Nguyen, Wyatte Grantham-Philips, USA TODAY; Cheryl McCloud, USA TODAY Network-Florida

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Georgia cold: Arctic blast brings coldest Christmas in three decades