Temperatures will rise slowly this morning from an overnight high of 20 degrees but could dip into the teens again tonight. If so, another hard freeze warning could be issued by the National Weather Service in Birmingham, said Jeanna Barnes, Pike County EMA director.

“Temperatures across several locations in Central Alabama were expected to dip into the mid to upper teens overnight,” Barnes said. “The cold temperatures that we have experienced around the holidays continue but no weather related problems have been reported to the EMA office. It has just been cold.”

Barnes said the main concern should be for the elderly and pets.

“If you have an elderly family member or friend who lives alone, you need to check on them and also make sure that your pets have a warm place to stay at night,” she said. “We are fortunate that the weather is clear and that no participation is expected until Wednesday. Then, the chance of rain is only 20 percent and the temperature will be above freezing so that should not present a problem.”

Barnes said the temperatures leading up to New Year’s are favorable.

“On Thursday the high will be around 65, with 66 on Friday,” she said. “We’ll see a high of 66 on New Year’s Day but there will be a 50 percent chance of rain, It’s hard to believe that the temperature will go from 20 degrees to 66. But 66 degrees sounds good to me and will to a lot of people.”