Several inches of rain to instigate flash flood risk from central US to central Appalachians

Multiple days of downpours are likely to lead to isolated flooding from the central Plains to the Ohio Valley and central Appalachians this week.

Motorists and emergency personnel should be on guard for potential flooding in some communities from Nebraska to West Virginia and western Virginia as the week progresses.

From Wednesday through Friday, this swath has the potential to receive 2-4 inches of rain with local amounts between 6 and 8 inches. A significant portion of this rain may fall within the span of a few of hours.

Showers and thunderstorms will continue to fire along the boundary between cool air to the north and hot, humid air to the south.

During this past weekend, this boundary was located over the northern Plains and Upper Midwest.

Over time, through the middle of the week, this zone of downpours will shift farther south.

The southward drift of the downpours zone will allow cooler and drier air to settle over areas hit hard by flooding over the northern tier.

However, just as the boundary stalled over the northern tier this weekend, it is likely to stall farther south during the middle to latter part of this week.

To add to the fray, a storm from the Rockies is forecast to drift eastward along the boundary, while tropical moisture is projected to feed up from the Texas coast, during the middle to latter part of the week.

While only a few locations in this zone may experience significant and dangerous flooding, downpours will hinder outdoor events, construction projects and travel.

Motorists are reminded to never attempt to drive through flooded areas. Not only may the water be much deeper than it appears, the road surface beneath may have been washed away.

Less than a few inches of water may cause your vehicle to lose traction. A couple of feet of water is enough to cause even heavy vehicles to float into deep water. Turn around and seek an alternative route.

People living along small streams and drainage basins prone to flooding should closely monitor the situation during persistent downpours. Seek higher ground if waters begin to rise.

Downpours may hinder portions of MLB games and could force a postponement or two of games in the Midwest this week, such as those in Cincinnati and Kansas City.

By the end of the week and this weekend, the swath of downpours is forecast to shift northeastward. While isolated flooding may still occur with the pattern, the downpours may not be as focused over a narrow zone but rather spread out over a larger geographical area.

After a two- to three-day stretch of dry weather, portions of states such as Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, New York and New England are likely to experience a return of showers and thunderstorms.

Farther south, cities such as Chicago, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., may only get one to two days of dry weather this week.

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