1-5 snow probs 1.jpg

Parts of central Alabama had the best chances of seeing accumulating snow on Friday, according to forecasters, but snow, sleet and freezing rain would be possible over a large part of Alabama starting on Friday. (Weather Prediction Center)

The National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning for part of central Alabama and winter weather advisories for a large part of the rest of the state on Thursday.

The weather service said 1-3 inches of snow could fall across part of east-central Alabama starting on Friday.

Snow, but not as much, was also possible in north and central Alabama. South and parts of central Alabama could also get a "mixed bag" of frozen precipitation including sleet and freezing rain, according to forecasts.

Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley issued a state of emergency on Thursday afternoon in anticipation of Friday's winter weather.

A winter storm warning was issued for several counties in central Alabama just after 3 p.m. Thursday. The warning includes the southern part of the Birmingham metro area.

The counties included are Calhoun, Cleburne, Shelby, Talladega, Clay, Randolph, Chilton, Coosa, Tallapoosa and Chambers.

The weather service in Birmingham said 2-3 inches of snow and sleet will be possible in the warning area starting Friday morning. The warning will be in effect from 6 a.m. Friday until 9 a.m. Saturday.

Winds were also expected to be strong, which will make travel hazardous.

⚠️ WINTER STORM WARNING & WINTER WEATHER ADVISORIES now in effect for much of Central AL. #alwx pic.twitter.com/zblVNR8Uif — NWS Birmingham (@NWSBirmingham) January 5, 2017

Advisories also went up for north Alabama. The first winter weather advisory was for northwest Alabama and will go into effect at noon Friday and last until midnight. Another advisory for north central and northeast Alabama will be in effect from 3 p.m. Friday until 3 a.m. Saturday.

Winter Weather Advisory has been issued for tomorrow. 1-2 inches of snow, potentially, could cause some travel concerns. #Cold #MilkandBread pic.twitter.com/4LfHx9uhcL — NWS Huntsville (@NWSHuntsville) January 5, 2017

More winter weather advisories stretched to the south and covered much of central and part of south Alabama.

The weather service said a half-inch to 2 inches would be possible in other parts of central Alabama, including Birmingham, Tuscaloosa, Gadsden and spots to the north.

Accumulating sleet and freezing rain were also becoming more of a concern on Thursday afternoon.

The weather service issued a winter weather advisory for sleet for south-central Alabama, including the Montgomery area, saying the "impacts could be significant."

The main area where the most sleet could accumulate was along and north of the U.S. Highway 80 and Interstate 85 corridors.

The winter weather advisories also stretched into parts of south Alabama.

310PM Impacts update: Areas near/north of highway 84 and west of I-65 could see hazardous driving conditions late Fri/early Sat #MOBwx pic.twitter.com/IC7KjHZq7s — NWS Mobile (@NWSMobile) January 5, 2017

The weather service in Mobile issued an advisory for several counties in southwest Alabama, which will be in effect from 3 p.m. Friday until 6 a.m. Saturday.

Rain could transition to sleet and freezing rain as early as Friday afternoon, the weather service said, and the wintry mix, which could include snow, was expected to spread south and east through the evening.

The weather service said that three-tenths of an inch or less of sleet and a tenth of an inch or less of freezing rain was possible in the advisory area.

Preparations were also being made closer to the coast. "Mobile County Public Works has sand stockpiled at each road camp in the event of any bridges icing over. Given the latest weather forecasts and advisories, they don't believe that will be much of an issue. However, each camp will be prepared and will react accordingly," a Mobile County Commission spokeswoman said.

In an afternoon forecast update, the weather service in Birmingham said forecast models were beginning to come into more agreement about timing and location of Friday's winter weather.

There are two areas of precipitation at issue. The first will be touched off by a cold front that is expected to move into Alabama late Thursday or early Friday.

Light snow could develop along the front over parts of north and north-central Alabama.

Then forecasters are also watching for an area of low pressure to develop over the Gulf. That system was expected to track eastward and spread precipitation to its north over parts of Alabama.

The track of that low and its strength will be big factors for who gets snow, who gets sleet or freezing rain and who gets only rain.

The weather service in Birmingham said that a mix of rain and sleet could start as early as 3 a.m. in the southwest part of central Alabama, and light snow will be possible farther north along the Interstate 20 corridor.

As of Thursday afternoon, central Alabama generally south of I-20 was expected to get the highest snow totals statewide. The weather service in Birmingham said confidence in snow and chances of "significant impacts" continued to increase.

However, forecasters continued to caution that uncertainty remains high on the exact placement of higher snowfall totals, and accumulation forecasts could change between now and Friday.

The weather service noted at only a small shift in the storm track could "make a big difference" for the I-20 corridor, "resulting in either higher accumulations or dry conditions."

To the south, between I-20 and I-85, computer models are forecasting rain changing over to sleet and possibly snow during the afternoon and evening on Friday, the weather service said.

Forecasters said accumulation amounts in that area were a challenge to forecast because heavy snow may be possible if sleet "doesn't cut into accumulations."

However, the weather service as of Thursday expected sleet to be the predominant weather along a corridor centered from Demopolis to Clanton to Wedowee.

Freezing rain would also be possible in that same area, the weather service said.

The weather service in Birmingham said there was a threat of considerable sleet over parts of central Alabama.

The one thing that was certain for north Alabama, and that is that any precipitation that falls on Friday will be in the form of snow.

The snow in north Alabama could begin as early as dawn on Friday and last through Friday night. However, it appeared more likely that the snow would start around 9 a.m. Friday for areas west of I-65 and after noon for areas east of the interstate.

Forecasters in north Alabama also cautioned that uncertainty remains high on the exact placement of higher snowfall totals, and accumulation forecasts could change between now and Friday.

As for south Alabama, the weather service in Mobile said a "mixed bag" of frozen precipitation would be possible over northern portions of its forecast area.

Forecasters believe light rain will eventually mix with or transition to light freezing rain, sleet or snow by Friday night.

Accumulations -- if any -- were expected to be light, the weather service said.

The most likely timeframe for any frozen precipitation appeared to be Friday afternoon through 3 a.m. Saturday.