Flash Flood Threat Eyes Missouri Valley, Mid-Atlantic Into Thursday

By Brett Rathbun, AccuWeather.com Meteorologist

August 5,2015; 8:53PM,EDT

 

 

A developing storm system will track from the Missouri Valley to the mid-Atlantic through Thursday night, producing locally flooding rain and gusty thunderstorms.
"The atmosphere is currently very moist in these areas, which will allow any thunderstorm to produce locally heavy rainfall," AccuWeather Meteorologist Josh Searles said.

Soaking Rain and Travel Delays across the Mid-Atlantic

The danger for potentially flooding rainfall will shift to Chattanooga and Knoxville, Tennessee; Jackson, Kentucky; and Beckley, West Virginia; on Thursday and then Greensboro and Raleigh, North Carolina; Richmond and Virginia Beach, Virginia; and the Delmarva Peninsula Thursday night.
Travel will become difficult at times across interstates 40, 55, 64, 75, 81 and 95.

Damaging winds near 60 mph are possible with these storms, especially along the southern flank. Combined with heavy rainfall, this can lead to downed trees and power lines contributing to sporadic power outages.
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The heaviest rain and thunderstorms are expected to stay outside of the major cities of Atlanta, Charlotte and St. Louis. Rain will spread across Washington, D.C., and graze Philadelphia Thursday night and into Friday, but the flood threat will be highest to the south.

Never drive through a flooded roadway. Only a small amount of rushing water can wash away vehicles.
AccuWeather meteorologists will be keeping a close eye on the storm as it passes over the Appalachians. A track farther to the north than currently expected may push the heavier rain to Washington, D.C., and the rain potential to New York City. A track farther south could concentrate the heaviest precipitation across the Carolinas and outside of Washington, D.C.
Based on the current track of the storm, rain will persist across the southern mid-Atlantic for a time on Friday with drenching and gusty thunderstorms targeting the coastal plain of the Carolinas.

As this storm system moves off the coast of the mid-Atlantic on Friday, it will take a turn toward Atlantic Canada. How close the storm tracks to the New England coast will determine if showers just graze far-eastern areas this weekend or if the rain spoils outdoor plans across more of the I-95 corridor.
Regardless, the storm will kick up rough surf along at the beaches of the mid-Atlantic and Northeast this weekend.
AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Kristina Pydynowski contributed to the content of this story.