Carolinas Prepare for 1,000-Year Flood
The extreme rain continues today, with the Carolinas in the cross-hairs. To quote from our Storm Blog: "For example, in parts of central South Carolina, rainfall amounts of 9.04 inches in a three-day period would be a 1-in-50-year event. Rainfall amounts of 15.6 inches would be a 1-in-1,000-year event. That is as high as the scale goes and that isn't as high as what some models are indicating is possible for rainfall totals."
Model forecasts of up to 37 inches of rain have stunned meteorologists for the last week. The official forecast from NOAA's WPC is for 10 to 15 inches of rain (see above). Although aided by Hurricane Joaquin (which is now forecast to be far enough offshore to avoid hurricane-force damage on the coast), the rain is coming mainly from a stalled cold front and upper-level low pressure system. The same system has dumped an inordinate amount of rain on the Eastern U.S. already:
