Mild temps welcome Christmas season at tower lightings

Raleigh, N.C. — Mild weather will stick around all weekend before frigid temperatures make their way into central North Carolina's forecast next week.

Morning low temperatures on Saturday and Sunday will continue their trend of landing in the 30s, but they will rebound into the high 50s and low 60s in the afternoons. Friday will also be warm as the skies stay clear for most of the day.

"We're going to see dry conditions today and a good bit of sunshine," said WRAL meteorologist Elizabeth Gardner.

Temperatures for the annual WRAL Tower Lighting at 6 p.m. will be in the mid-50s with a 100 percent chance of (artificial) snow. An hour later, temperatures for the tower lighting in Durham will only dip to 50 degrees.

The mercury will plummet next week, though, as a cold front moves in.

"This time next week, we have a cold blast coming in," Gardner said. "But we continue with our mild conditions through the weekend and at least through the middle of next week."

Temperatures will make their way down through the week, dropping into the 40s on Thursday with a low in the mid-20s.