Rain to drench, severe storms to rumble in southern US
A series of winter storms will unleash enough rain in the southern United States to trigger travel problems and a dangerous risk of flash flooding along small streams, especially in Helene-ravaged areas.
As multiple storms bring snow and ice to the Northeast this week, the situation along the Gulf Coast will be very different.
As a series of winter storms unload snow and ice for thousands of miles from the Rockies to the Atlantic coast this week, enough warmth and moisture will exist in parts of the south-central and southeastern United States to lead to localized flooding and potentially damaging thunderstorms.
Through next Monday, there is the potential for 5-10 inches of rain to fall on portions of the lower Mississippi and Tennessee valleys and the southern Appalachians and Piedmont. The first two storms alone may put down 2-6 inches of rain in part of the area into Thursday, AccuWeather meteorologists advise.
Urban flooding is likely; Flash flooding in Helene-ravaged areas is a concern
Downpours can be heavy and long-lasting enough from each storm to trigger flash flooding of some city streets and poor drainage areas on highways and secondary roads. The urban-style flooding can occur in, but is not limited to, Atlanta, New Orleans, Nashville, Charlotte and Houston.
While there will be a break between each of the three storms into early next week, each successive storm will bring an increasing potential for quick runoff into area streams.
In areas where infrastructure is still heavily damaged, or forests have been destroyed in the wake of Helene from late September, the risk of flash flooding and further damage will be greatest. In the wintertime, forests tend to offer less of a buffer during heavy rain due to a lack of a leaf canopy, which would control some of the runoff.
"Parts of the Asheville, North Carolina, area have not had much rain since Helene," AccuWeather Meteorologist and Social Media Producer Jesse Ferrell said, "Should the rainfall anticipated unfold, bridges and roads built but not completed with temporary asphalt, drainage ditches and culverts could be damaged."
An Asheville, North Carolina, resident recorded the scenes of damage that remained on Dec. 27, three months after Hurricane Helene devastated the community.
Some Southern thunderstorms to become severe
As the second storm in the series ramps up and begins to move from the Plains to the Mississippi Valley Wednesday, the severe weather threat will encompass a similar area as Tuesday from northeastern Texas to much of Louisiana and Mississippi and into western and central Alabama.
Once again, the greatest threat from the thunderstorms will be for powerful wind gusts ranging from 55 to 65 mph with an AccuWeather Local StormMax™ gust of 75 mph, or that of a Category 1 hurricane.
Severe thunderstorms can, on occasion, produce brief tornadoes. While the setup is less than ideal on Tuesday, Wednesday's setup is more favorable for a few tornadoes across the region.
The risk of flash flooding and severe weather, including tornadoes in the Southern states may be even greater with a storm forecast to travel across the eastern half of the nation this weekend.
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