Bitter cold expected to start work week after freezing drizzle

The freezing drizzle threat overnight is expected to be followed by biting cold for the start of the work week, according to the National Weather Service.

The freezing drizzle warning was to end at 4 a.m. Sunday and the rather mild temperatures are expected to fall throughout the day until reaching wind chill factors in the single digits by Sunday night.

"Bitter cold (for southeast Michigan standards) then returns tomorrow

and lingers through early week, even though the Central Great Lakes

will only be getting a glancing blow of the true Arctic air," the weather service predicts.

Earlier, a winter weather advisory had been issued for freezing rain Saturday night that was expected to make roads, bridges and overpasses icy in parts of Michigan and bring a risk of power outages.

The weather service said it expected periods of light freezing rain and freezing drizzle during the late evening that could produce a light glaze of ice to less than a tenth of an inch of ice.

While air temperatures gradually climb to near and above freezing late, ground and pavement temperatures lag, allowing ice to form on untreated surfaces, the weather service said.

Motorists were urged to slow down and use caution. Secondary roads, bridges and overpasses, parking lots, and sidewalks are most susceptible to freezing, the weather service said.

From 6 p.m. Saturday until 4 a.m. Sunday a winter weather advisory was in effect for parts of central, south central, southwest and west central Michigan, including the cities of Ludington, Baldwin, Reed City, Hart, Fremont, Big Rapids, Muskegon, Greenville, Grand Haven, Jenison, Grand Rapids, Ionia, Holland, Hastings, Charlotte, South Haven, Kalamazoo, Battle Creek, and Jackson.

From 8 p.m. Saturday to 4 a.m. Sunday an advisory was in effect for locations along and south of Interstate 69 including the cities of Owosso, Flint, Lapeer, Port Huron, Howell, Pontiac, Warren, Ann Arbor, Detroit, Adrian, and Monroe.

Areas along and south of Interstate 94 stand the best chance of seeing measurable ice accumulation, but still under a tenth of an inch, the weather service said.

Residents are also urged to prepare for possible power outages from freezing rain.