An intense and historic flood disaster—unrelated to Hurricane Joaquin, but influenced by it—continues to unfold across the Carolinas this afternoon, with South Carolina taking the brunt of the tropical deluge. Some communities near Charleston have recorded more than two feet of rain in the past three days.
The decaying remnants of a tropical depression will move through the desert southwest over the next couple of days, dragging with it enough tropical air that residents might think they woke up in southern Florida. This excess moisture will lead to very heavy rain that could easily produce flash flooding in vulnerable areas.
On Friday, a raging wildfire burned cars stranded on I-15 near Los Angeles while crews battled drones to put out the flames. On Saturday, part of I-10 collapsed as Los Angeles and San Diego recorded the most rain they’ve ever seen during the month of July. Oh, you know, just another weekend.
Have you had a chance to dry out from Rainpocalypse 2015? I hope so! We’re getting ready to see significant amounts of rain across the central U.S. in a short amount of time, and flash flood watches are in place in anticipation of this environmental ablution as we trudge through the first full week of July.
More than a foot of rain could fall on the southern United States over the next week, with some spots on the Gulf Coast seeing more than ten inches of rain yesterday alone. On a scale from "grab an umbrella" to "Jim Cantore's comin' to town," this week will be a solid "build yourself an ark."
It looks like the weather over the United States will briefly get interesting again over the next few days, and as with all interesting weather, it spells danger for millions of people. Areas from Chicago to Detroit are at risk for large hail, damaging winds, and possibly an isolated tornado tomorrow.
Going from drought to deluge, the southwestern United States is being inundated by flooding rainfall yet again today. One of the terms meteorologists are batting around to describe this record-setting pool of atmospheric moisture has people confused, but it's actually pretty easy to understand.
With the recent spate of flash floods in Detroit and Baltimore and New York, a common question rising in the storms' aftermath asks how often certain areas of the country see flash floods. I put together some maps to show how frequently different parts of the United States experience these dangerous torrents of water.
Major flooding is ongoing near Baltimore this afternoon after areas south of town have seen more than seven inches of rain in a short period of time, and amounts could approach ten inches before the storms stop. A similar situation unfolded in Detroit last night.
Monsoon season is in full swing across parts of the western United States as areas from Nevada to Oklahoma — including most of the state of Colorado — are under a flash flood watch for the next couple of days. Parts of the region could see three to four inches of rain by the time the event is over on Wednesday.
New Bedford, Massachusetts is under a rare "flash flood emergency" this evening as Hurricane Arthur dropped more than six inches of rain over the city in just a couple of hours. Even though forecasts called for heavy rain, the intensity and amount of rainfall that occurred (and is ongoing) came as a surprise.
