Heavy rains roll through the Triangle; flash flood watches issued

View The Original Article Here

— Showers are rolling through central North Carolina Thursday afternoon causing flash flood watches to pop up throughout the WRAL viewing area.  

It’s the start of a wet stretch that will bring parts of the viewing area 1 to 2 inches of rain over a two-day span.

The rain could make for a messy afternoon commute for some. Heavy rains are expected to continue into the evening in many areas.

“After lunchtime, we get into a better chance for thunderstorms,” said WRAL meteorologist Elizabeth Gardner. “This is when we’ll have the best chance for heavy rain. This keeps on going through the evening and into the overnight.”

Futurecast: Thursday at 5 p.m.

Most of the WRAL viewing area is under a medium risk for flash flooding on Thursday.

Flash flooding risk for Thursday

Any of the showers and storms the next two days could trigger flood advisories since the rain could be heavy at times.

“I think the day that has the best chance for that is Friday, when that system is directly over us,” said WRAL meteorologist Mike Maze.

The Triangle and points to the north and east are under a medium risk for flash flooding on Friday, when widespread rain is expected.

The 5-day rainfall total shows many locations in central North Carolina could see 1-2 inches of rain.

Forecasted rainfall over the next 5 days

Friday and Saturday will then have a 50 percent chance for storms.

Temperatures will remain in the upper 80s for the work week, before dipping into the low 80s on Saturday.

After the driest spring on record, the state is set up for soaking conditions this week.

It was a wet start to the month, with 3.8 inches of rain recorded at Raleigh-Durham International Airport so far in June.

“The June average is 3.89, so we’re almost there already — just four days in,” said WRAL meteorologist Kat Campbell.

While Raleigh received about 2.4 inches of rain over the past week, other towns such as Greensboro received upwards of 6 inches of rain.

On Wednesday night, lightning could be seen in many counties, including Wayne County, where it lit up the sky for an extended period of time.

At times, the two thunderstorms in Wayne County were producing over 160 lightning strikes within a span of 15 minutes. The lightning even made it into the WRAL Newscast at 10 on FOX 50.

7-Day Forecast