Welcome to Thursday, and the warm-up begins today…

Weather: Let the melt begin. After we got more snow than originally expected, it’s time to see it slowly go away. Sunny skies will take over, and high temperatures will reach the lower 40s. Lows tonight will stay just above freezing. It will be even warmer Friday with highs in the middle 50s, with a slight chance of afternoon showers.

Lots of snow, lots of problems. It looks like the north Jefferson County area got the most snow in central Alabama during Wednesday’s storm. Reports of five inches were common, especially in Gardendale, Mt. Olive and Corner. Some parts of south Blount County got a bit more. North Alabama was the hardest hit within the state, with Boaz reporting 10 inches.

Roads throughout the area were slick and often impassable, with several towns such as Gardendale and Locust Fork officially closing their streets. As of this morning, ALDOT is still advising people to stay offroads until noon unless they absolutely must travel. Thousands of Alabama Power customers lost power, with nearly 5,000 still in the cold and dark at midnight. Alabama Power said the number in metro Birmingham without power as of 7 a.m. stood at 9,900.

Another day off. Schoolchildren are taking a break again today, as all local school systems called off classes for a third straight day. Jefferson State Community College also dismissed students for Thursday, while UAB is delaying classes until 11 a.m.

Sports: Not today. The cancellation of classes also means that the AHSAA girls basketball sub-regional games scheduled for tonight have been moved to Friday. Fultondale will host its first girls sub-regional in school history Friday night at 7 p.m. against Sulligent, and Hayden will host Pleasant Grove at the same time. No word on Gardendale at Shades Valley, Corner at Calera or Ramsay at Center Point. In wrestling, the AHSAA is delaying the start of the state championship meet in Huntsville until Friday morning; the meet was scheduled to begin Thursday afternoon with Class 6A action… Baseball: The Captain takes a farewell tour. New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter announced Wednesday that the 2014 season will be his last. Jeter has spent his entire Major League career in pinstripes, this one will be his 19th… Olympics: Border battle. The two gold-medal favorites in women’s hockey met in preliminary-round play, with Canada edging the United States 3-2, taking the lead on a controversial goal late in which it appeared the puck crossed the goal line after the referee blew her whistle. In halfpipe snowboarding, Julie Donaldson did what superstar Shaun White couldn’t by winning the gold medal, just a quarter-point ahead of second place. In speed skating, American Shani Davis came up short in his quest for a third straight gold in the 1,000 meters, placing eighth. And in curling, the U.S. women are not 0-4 after losing to China by a 7-4 score.