Major Storm To Hit Northeast With Heavy Rain, Strong Winds
PHILADELPHIA (CBS)--After a quiet, pleasant day, big changes are on the way. A strong storm that's bringing a major severe weather outbreak to the south today will head for the Mid-Atlantic region tomorrow, and our region will bear much of the brunt.
Here's a breakdown of the storm:
TIMING:
Showers arrive after midnight, with a heavier band of rain and thunder early Thursday morning bands of heavy rain and strong thunderstorms from late morning through late afternoon scattered showers linger through the evening hours.
IMPACTS:
Most models agree that this system will bring a widespread 1-2" of rain to the area, with locally as much as 3" in the heaviest storms Rain will fall over a 9-12 hour period, and with the ground saturated from previous storms, we could see the risk for flooding and runoff strong gusty winds will accompany this storm, especially along the coast, where winds could gust to 45 mph severe thunderstorms will be another risk for this system, especially in areas south of Philadelphia.
Any storm could bring the threat for flooding downpours, damaging winds, hail, and even an isolated tornado.
ALERTS:
A Flood Watch in effect for Philadelphia and surrounding suburbs from Thursday into midday Friday.
A Wind Advisory is in effect for New Jersey coastal counties and Central/Southern DE from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Thursday.
A slight risk of severe weather for South Jersey and Delaware, marginal risk for Philadelphia metro.
Drivers across the area should be prepared for significant slowdowns during both the AM and PM commutes in the area.
Enough rain and cloud cover in the morning may help to stabilize the atmosphere, mitigating the risk for widespread severe weather, but any storm could produce the threat for damaging winds.
We'll have to keep a close eye on a line of storms that will move through VA/NC in the late morning time frame, and assess the risk for these cells surviving in a severe capacity into our area. Stay tuned on air and online for the latest.