Tropical Storm Debby will bring rain and potential flash flooding to Charlotte

Tropical Storm Debby could soak Charlotte this week, creating a high risk of flash flooding throughout North Carolina.

Threat level: Debby may produce up to 4 inches of rain in the Charlotte area, WBTV chief meteorologist Al Conklin tells Axios. Thursday is expected to have the heaviest rainfall and wind gusts up to 35mph.

Catch up quick: Debby made landfall Monday morning around Florida's Big Bend as a Category 1 hurricane.

• Debby is now off the coast of South Carolina and is expected to make its second landfall midweek.
• North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper declared a state of emergency Monday.

What to expect: Chances for scattered showers will increase through the midweek, but the greater impacts will unfold south and east of Charlotte, Conklin says.

• Highs will be in the low to mid-80s through Wednesday with mostly cloudy skies.
• WBTV, Axios' news partner, has First Alerts in play for Thursday when Debby is forecast to make its closest approach to our area.
• Weather in Charlotte is expected to slowly improve later this week, with scattered showers Saturday and mostly sunny Sunday. Both days are forecast to be in the 80s.

The big picture: Climate change causes tropical storms and hurricanes to produce more rainfall than they used to, and some studies show that these storms are now moving more slowly after landfall than in previous decades as well, Axios' Andrew Freedman reports .

• Plus climate change is causing rising sea levels, which yields more destructive storm surges. Coastal population growth has put more people in harm's way .

Go deeper: Axios New Orleans guide to making a prep kit for hurricane season

Editor's note: This story was originally published on Aug. 5 and was last updated on Aug. 6.