ATLANTA – Thursday will see a continued threat of flash flooding across the South and Southeast due to an abundance of moisture being funneled into the region that has allowed relentless rain to soak the area, leading to numerous Flash Flood Warnings and even a Flash Flood Emergency in Louisiana.
The focus of flooding on Thursday will be found from Louisiana to Mississippi and through Alabama into North Georgia. These are areas that have already seen rain over the past several days.
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So, additional precipitation that is forecast for the region could quickly lead to flash flooding in urban areas or areas with poor drainage.
The FOX Forecast Center said that what’s also concerning is that some of these showers and thunderstorms could begin to train at times, or relentlessly soak the same areas over and over.
That will quickly escalate the flash flood threat in areas where that occurs.
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The heaviest rainfall on Wednesday was reported around the New Orleans metro, where rainfall rates reached around 1-2 inches per hour. In Mandeville, Louisiana, flash flooding submerged cars and appeared to enter some homes and businesses. The National Weather Service estimated that between 4.5 and 6.5 inches of rain fell during a short time period.
Because of the heavy rain, the National Weather Service office in New Orleans declared a Flash Flood Emergency for St. Tammany Parish, north of the Big Easy.
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NOAA’s Weather Prediction Center has highlighted hundreds of miles from the Gulf Coast to the interior mid-Atlantic that will be at risk of flash flooding on Thursday.
However, there is a greater risk for millions of people living in the Southeast from the Mississippi Valley to the Tennessee Valley.
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This threat includes several major metropolitan areas that will need to monitor conditions, including New Orleans, Jackson in Mississippi, Pensacola in Florida, Mobile, Montgomery, Birmingham and Huntsville in Alabama, Atlanta and Asheville in North Carolina.
Flood Watches and Warnings remain in effect across the region through at least Friday.
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According to the FOX Forecast Center, a wide swath of the Gulf Coast and Southeast could pick up 1-3 inches of additional rainfall through the end of the week, with isolated areas approaching 5 inches of precipitation.
Areas at risk of seeing those higher rainfall totals include New Orleans and areas from northern Alabama to western North Carolina.
Many of the communities that stand to see rainfall are dealing with a precipitation deficit, so the rainfall will be welcome news.
More than 95% of counties in Mississippi and 100% of the parishes that make up Louisiana are coping with unusually dry or drought conditions.
The FOX Forecast Center said it expects the wet pattern to relax over the weekend, which will lead to some drier days.
Thursday will also see another risk of severe weather in the Southeast and along the Gulf Coast, but the risk is relatively low.
NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center has placed areas from New Orleans and Baton Rouge in Louisiana into the Florida Panhandle and north into Mississippi and Alabama in a Level 1 out of 5 on its thunderstorm risk scale.
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And while the risk is low, thunderstorms that do develop will be capable of producing damaging wind gusts and even a tornado or two.
As with any severe thunderstorms that develop, torrential rain and deadly lightning are also possible.
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The flood risk will continue to slide east as the week continues and we approach the weekend.
New Orleans will be under the gun once again on Friday, with Montgomery, Alabama, also seeing a renewed risk of flooding due to heavy rain and thunderstorms.
And while the risk is much lower, there is a chance that flash flooding could occur again in the Southeast into the mid-Atlantic and Tennessee Valley.
Flooding north of Houston triggered Montgomery County Judge Mark Keough to issue a disaster declaration on Wednesday. Lake Conroe was reported to be at least 2 feet above average, forcing road closures and evacuations.
Video recorded in Texas showed heavy rain falling during a thunderstorm that also produced vivid lightning and even some hail.
Heavy rain in Louisiana also led to flooding, and video recorded in Opelousas showed several inches of water that began to flood a driveway before the heaviest of the rain began to fall during the afternoon hours.