Temperatures remain bitterly cold Wednesday morning, sitting at 13 degrees at 6 a.m. in the Belleville area.

But metro-east residents will get a chance to thaw out later in the day as the high is expected to reach 40 degrees under mostly sunny skies.

The break is only temporary, however. The low temperature overnight will slip back to 15 degrees and the high Thursday will only reach 28. There is a 40 percent chance of a wintry mix falling Thursday night with a low of 21 degrees.