Flooding, Gusty Thunderstorm Threat: Boston, NYC, DC

By Kristina Pydynowski, Senior Meteorologist

August 12,2013; 5:26PM,EDT

 

 

Thunderstorms capable of producing flooding downpours and/or damaging winds are set to return to New England and the mid-Atlantic on Tuesday.
Travel delays, spoiled outdoor plans and property damage are problems residents from Portland to New York City to to Richmond, Va., could face on Tuesday.
The threat for flooding downpours will encompass this entire corridor, as well as back to the mountains of West Virginia. Low-lying and poor drainage areas will be most susceptible to flooding.
Thunderstorms with both flooding downpours and damaging winds will primarily occur south of Boston, from Providence to Richmond. New York City, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., also lie in this zone.

The afternoon hours should prove to be more active than the morning.
Drenching thunderstorm could also create hazards to motorists by reducing visibility and heightening the risk of vehicles hydroplaning at highway speeds.
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While not every thunderstorm will trigger flooding or damaging winds, all should prompt residents and visitors to move inside. Remember as soon as thunder is heard, you are close enough to get struck by lightning.
Tuesday's stormy weather will be preceded by a spotty shower or thunderstorm across the Northeast on Monday with building humidity in Philadelphia and New York City.
The culprit behind the drenching and gusty thunderstorms across New England and the mid-Atlantic on Tuesday is a cold front that will first drop through the Great Lakes on Monday.

In the wake of the front, drier and less humid air will pour across the Northeast for Wednesday and Thursday and once again suppress any summer heat that was attempting to surge northward.
Wednesday may actually feel cool to some in the St. Lawrence Valley and eastern Great Lakes where highs will be held to around 70 degrees.
The front, however, will struggle to make much more southward progress after reaching North Carolina, keeping the chance of thunderstorms in the forecast for Richmond and surrounding areas for the remainder of the week.