SEVERE WEATHER DESK: Flooding continues from heavy rain & Helene Arrives Tonight

Flood Alerts Issued for Our Region:

FLASH FLOOD WARNING: Bland, Giles, and southern most Mercer County until 12:30pm Thursday afternoon. Active flooding is happening or is expected. Flash flooding happens quickly requiring constant monitoring of water levels if you are in this area. Do not drive through flooded roads and be mindful of quickly changing conditions on the road.

AREAL FLOOD WARNING: EXTENDED Tazewell County until 4:45 PM , Bland County until 5PM (in addition to flash flood warning), Giles County until 5 PM, Monroe County until 5:15 PM, Summers County until 5:15 PM . Steady rains training over the same area is taxing smaller creeks and streams, pushing them to their breaking points. Low lying areas can expect flood waters as rain continues to move across the region. Monitor local conditions closely and move to higher ground as necessary.

Thursday morning will be soggy as rains from Wednesday’s stalled front continues to push into the region. With nowhere for the already 2-4 inches of rain to go, adding 1-3 inches more will only worsen the active flooding across the region and add more instances throughout the day. Be vigilant while traveling, especially early on in the day.

As our stationary front moves slowly east and the effects of Helene are felt, we’ll catch a small break in activity this afternoon and early evening. A few scattered showers here or there, but overall rain coverage lets up quite a bit. It won’t last long. Flooding is still a concern even after the rain stops. All this water has to go somewhere and it can take up to 6 hours after the rain ends for it to do so. Flooded roadways and rising smaller creeks/streams will be something to watch for.

Tonight, after making landfall in the Florida Panhandle, Hurricane Helene marches north. Winds will begin to increase late tonight 10-15mph out of the south. Rain returns from south to north overnight. With the outer bands of Helene expected in the overnight hours, it’ll be a good idea to make sure your set up to receive alerts on your phone. Flooding rains before dawn and winds pushing 20-25mph out of the southeast with gusts as high as 40mph likely. Downed power lines, trees, and debris in roadways will be common place. Not to mention the marginal risk for severe weather with all modes possible including quick spin-up tornadoes and damaging winds.

Friday morning Helene continues to pummel our region with heavy rain and strong winds. The morning commute will be difficult for some, if not impossible for others. Downed trees, power lines, and active flooding on and across roads all lead to a very white-knuckle commute. Use caution. The element of severe weather will be with us early on then fade into the afternoon.

As the outer band of Helene pushes north and the center of the storm pushes west, we’ll see winds relax into the afternoon with occasional showers remaining but the heaviest of rain moves on. Flooding will still be a concern with the nearly 6-8 inches of rain we’ll have received over the last 3 days. However, for the most part, we look to be on the drier side as Helene moves west.

Friday night a few scattered showers as tropical moisture remains and Helene spins just west of our region. Waves of rain showers with breaks between them will keep our flood risk running high. At least the winds will have relaxed to a more manageable 15-20mph range. We continue to see a drying trend into the pre-dawn hours of Saturday.

Saturday the remnant low of Helene pushes into western Kentucky away from our region giving us a needed break from the rain for the morning. A bit breezy at times with winds from the southeast 10-15mph with occasional winds gust 20-25mph, especially on the ridgelines. As Helene loses steam our jet stream nudges her back west with showers expected to return Saturday late afternoon and through the overnight hours. By this time, rain will be light to moderate in nature.

Sunday is a mostly cloudy day with morning showers that break up a bit into the afternoon. Off and on showers are a good bet but there will be some dry hours mixed in. Winds continue to relax more southwesterly 5-10mph with occasional gusts 15-20mph. The slow moving remnant low of the former Helene drags her feet moving out so expect a few showers through the overnight hours.

Monday will be a split day with our mountains remain mostly cloudy with occasional showers from time to time. It’s our western counties that begin to see the clouds break up a little to allow for more sunshine into the day. Highs push into the mid and upper 70s while our mountains are stuck in the upper 60s. What is left of Helene continues to push off the Virginia coastline taking the clouds and the rain with her. By Monday night, we’ll have dried out considerably giving us some time to recover.

Tuesday is looking to be a dry day with a more clouds than sun but enough to help us push back into the low 70s. Northwest winds and extra clouds will keep temps a touch cool like the last few days but it’s the dry time we’re excited about to give our drought stricken ground time to absorb all the rain we’ve revived.

Wednesday we are expected a weak cold front to arrive with increasing clouds, a little breeze, and scattered showers. Better opportunity for rain in the afternoon and evening but even here scattered light to moderate showers in nature. Highs struggle into the 70s with cooler air moving in behind the cold front.

In your extended forecast, high pressure is looking promising bringing back the dry and sunny days with temps pushing near average, now in the low 70s this time of year. The tropics are still active which could derail long range forecasts in the coming weeks but for now, we look to quiet down for an extended time heading into the first week of October.

THURSDAY – ACTIVE WEATHER DAY
Heavy AM Rain, Brief PM Break, Helene Arrives Late. Highs in the low 70s.
FRIDAY – HELENE IMPACTS
Heavy rain & strong winds AM, Sct. showers PM. Highs in the low 70s.
SATURDAY
Drier morning with sun & clouds, PM Showers. Highs in the low 70s.
SUNDAY
Mostly cloudy, spotty showers at times. Highs in the mid 70s.
MONDAY
Mtn showers, drier west. Highs in the 70s for most.
TUESDAY
Drier morning, increasing clouds PM. Highs in the 70s.
WEDNESDAY
Sct. showers, some dry time. Highs in the 70s.
THURSDAY
Drier with more sunshine. Highs in the 70s.
FRIDAY
Sunny & mild. Highs in the mid 70s.
SATURDAY
Comfy and nice. Highs in the upper 70s.
SUNDAY
Still sunny. Highs in the 70s.

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