Forecast: Not quite freezing

Wire and
Staff Reports
As parts of the South hunker down for winter precipitation, east St. Mary may escape without even dipping below the freezing mark.
The latest National Weather Service forecast from Lake Charles calls for a low of 33 degrees Thursday morning and 36 degrees early Friday. Then a warming trend will begin.
More importantly, no precipitation is in the forecast through Sunday.
So the weatherman is expecting no repeat of the 2- to 3-inch snowfall of Dec. 8, 2017.
Snow flurries were reported Tuesday in northern Louisiana.
The National Weather Service says accumulating snow is likely in northeast Arkansas, southeastern Missouri, northwest Tennessee, western and central Kentucky and southern Illinois and Indiana. Farther south, forecasters expect lighter snow, sleet and freezing rain.
Forecasters are warning drivers to use caution, saying roads may be slippery and visibility may be poor.
Officials say they’re preparing to clear icy roads and bridges, with Mississippi Transportation Commissioner Mike Tagert saying Tuesday that crews in that state were readying plows and salt spreaders.
Forecasters say moisture from the Gulf of Mexico is interacting with colder air during the year’s first cold snap across much of the region.