Saturday rain may dampen football games, outdoor plans in Northeast

Umbrellas and raincoats will be needed across the Northeast as the weekend kicks off, and may put a damper on football games and outdoor plans before the next batch of fall-like air settles across the region.

Concerns about a massive coastal storm potentially flooding the northeastern United States this weekend are diminishing, AccuWeather meteorologists say.

While some rain is coming, it should not take up a huge part of the weekend. The rain will be fragmented and likely to depart quickly.

A tropical rainstorm that will spread downpours and the risk of flash flooding across the Gulf Coast region into the end of the week is more likely to swing offshore of the Carolinas rather than make the turn and run northward into the mid-Atlantic and much of New England.

"The southern tropical rainstorm will likely remain separate from a cool front and jet stream dip that is heading for the Northeast this weekend," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Adam Douty said.

Instead of a weekend washout, people across the Northeast will likely see spotty showers with a few pockets of steadier rain. The bulk of the rain will fall during the first part of the weekend in the central Appalachians and much of the mid-Atlantic and then mainly during Sunday in New England.

However, if the tropical rainstorm over the Southeast strengthens significantly and tracks much closer to the coast, the Northeast may have to contend with long-lasting wind-swept rain, coastal flooding and major travel disruptions.

Meanwhile, a separate ocean storm that AccuWeather has designated a tropical rainstorm was located near Bermuda as of Thursday midday. The tropical rainstorm has the potential to become a tropical depression or tropical storm prior to landfall. This feature is forecast to track northward toward Atlantic Canada and not the mid-Atlantic and southern New England coasts of the U.S. It will raise seas offshore and may be a concern for deep-sea fishing, shipping, and cruise interests.

The next two names on the list of tropical storms for the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season are Francine and Gordon.

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Temperature and humidity levels will remain rather low and comfortable for some from Thursday to Friday ahead of the approaching rain. Highs will generally range from the mid-70s to the low 80s F.

However, as the front approaches Saturday, humidity levels will climb as clouds and showers limit high temperatures.

Any urban flooding incidents will tend to be isolated, brief, and not a repeat of the disastrous flooding from earlier in the summer. Thunderstorms that approach area football and baseball games may result in activities being suspended.

A reinforcing push of cooler and less humid air will follow Saturday and Sunday in the region. Temperatures will generally dip 5-15 degrees lower than Friday's levels.

Despite at least partial sunshine, highs will generally range from the upper 50s to the mid-60s over the Appalachians Sunday and the 70s along the Interstate 95 zone. People who mind cool conditions may want to wear jackets and long sleeves.

As the new batch of cool air passes over the relatively warm waters of the Great Lakes this weekend, angry-looking clouds will gather, spotty showers will erupt, and waterspouts may be unleashed--all common occurrences during the early-autumn season lake-effect.

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