Maryland Weather: Debby will bring soaking rain this week
BALTIMORE -- Off-and-on wet weather is expected for the rest of the week as the remnants of Debby move northward towards the Mid-Atlantic. A stalled front will provide a chance for a few scattered showers and storms this afternoon.
High temperatures today will be cooler than recent days, primarily in the upper 70s and low 80s, due to the thick cloud cover across the area. Chances for showers will continue overnight, with low temperatures falling back to the lower 70s.
As Debby inches closer on Thursday, scattered showers will again move across the area from south to north. Based on the latest forecast track from the National Hurricane Center, the center of circulation associated with the remnants of Debby will pass farther west than previously thought.
This shift does two things for the Baltimore area. First, it takes the heaviest rain farther west into Western Maryland, Western Pennsylvania, Southeast Ohio, and West Virginia, as opposed to right on top of the I-95 corridor. At this time, it appears the heaviest rain for the Baltimore area will likely occur Friday evening into Friday night as the system passes just to our north.
More prolonged heavy rain is expected across Western Maryland, beginning as early as late Thursday and continuing through Friday. Rain totals in this area could exceed five inches in some spots. Closer to home, rainfall totals will generally be between one and two inches, with some spots seeing upwards of three inches under prolonged heavy rain bands. The Eastern Shore will likely see even less rain, as they will be farther away from the storm system.
The second impact of the westerly track is that it puts our area in a more favorable position for potential severe weather on Friday afternoon and evening. Favorable instability and wind shear will create an environment for rotating storms east of the track Friday afternoon and evening, so we will have to watch for the possibility of many supercell storms and isolated tornadoes. This is common with decaying tropical systems well inland, so it will be something to monitor on Friday.
A WJZ First Alert weather day is in effect for Friday due to the heavy rain potential and the possibility of isolated tornadoes east of the center. The good news is that the storm system is expected to move out quickly, leading to a return to sunny, quiet weather for the upcoming weekend.
Rain will move out by late Friday night, with sunshine returning for Saturday and Sunday. High temperatures will rise into the 80s, and low temperatures at night will fall into the mid-60s as lower humidity moves back into the region in the wake of the remnants of Debby.
A northwesterly flow pattern will dominate most of next week, bringing dry weather, sunshine, and a few clouds with low humidity through at least Wednesday. High temperatures each afternoon will reach the mid-to-upper 80s, with overnight lows falling into the low-to-mid 60s. Rain chances will be slim to none for most of next week, though humidity levels will start creeping back up heading towards next weekend.
