Warm, sunny Saturday welcome after bitter week

Temperatures reached 68 degrees at WRAL's downtown Raleigh studio and 66 at Raleigh-Durham International Airport under sunny skies with low humidity and just the touch of a breeze. That's a gain of about 30 degrees from Friday when the Triangle shuddered under a chill rain and winds gusting up to 25 mph.

The pleasant weather eased a bit of the burden for tens of thousands of North Carolinians who lost power to Friday's ice storm and those who were working to clear downed trees. 

Temperatures were near freezing to start the day Saturday, but the sun burned off any remaining ice early, yielding a day more "normal" for the first week in March.

The trend continues Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, and highs could climb into the low 70s early in the work week.

"We'll finish up the weekend with more of this gorgeous weather," Wilmoth said.

Monday and Tuesday will actually be above normal for this time of year. "We won't be near record highs, but it sure beats the highs in the 40s that we've seen the last few days," said WRAL meteorologist Mike Moss.

The next chance for rain will arrive Wednesday, and temperatures will dip back into the 50s behind the front.