Old Man Winter is grumpier than ever, but fortunately for Pike County residents the brunt of his anger will be felt north of Montgomery.

The National Weather Service in Birmingham forecasts a possible chance for a mixture of primarily rain and ice late Wednesday evening and early Thursday for much of central Alabama.

Michael Garrison, Meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Birmingham, expects the City of Troy to remain relatively snow-free.

“If there is snow, it’ll be just a few flurries here and there,” Garrison said.

And, although there is a chance for possible ice, according to Garrison, temperatures just aren’t conducive for another winter freeze.

“We’re looking at a low Thursday morning of around 34 degrees Fahrenheit,” Garrison said. “That’s close, but something would have to change before you could get any ice. I just don’t think that’s a problem right now and later on Thursday you’ll warm up into the mid-40s so we don’t see any issues there either. It looks like you guys are OK.”

Garrison says that Pike County residents can expect somewhere between a quarter and a half inch of rain as the storm moves through.

Although the outlook looks fairly decent here, the National Weather Service encourages residents to take the necessary safety precautions in case of shifts in the weather pattern.

“Make sure you stay up with the weather in case something changes and you do happen to fall within that zone where temperatures are below freezing,” Garrison said.

Dr. Mark Bazzell, superintendent for Pike County Schools, doesn’t anticipate any school closings, but is taking the proper measures to ensure the safety of Pike County students.

“We’re going to watch the weather as we always do when there’s a possibility that the weather will impact school,” Bazzell said. “We’re going to continue to watch this weather system to see if there will be any winter weather heading down this way, and if so, we’ll take the proper safety precautions like we always do and inform the public.”

Jeanna Barnes, Emergency Management Agency Director, is optimistic about the local area’s forecast.

“It’ll probably just be rain for us, but up around Montgomery and further north they can expect more than an inch of snow,” Barnes said. “In Pike County, between the hours of 5 and 8 p.m. Wednesday night, there’s a chance we might get some freezing rain if the temperature gets low enough.”

The National Weather Service in Birmingham predicts the best snowfall will most likely be just north of Montgomery, which ultimately means that from Montgomery down through Pike County can really only expect to be cold and wet.