Washington, D.C. – Scattered flash flooding and severe storms are expected to disrupt parts of the eastern and southern U.S. today, with localized downpours targeting the Mid-Atlantic and South Texas, and damaging winds likely across the Tennessee Valley.
According to the National Weather Service, a widespread zone of showers and thunderstorms will stretch from the Northeast to the Gulf Coast as a strong cold front moves east. A Slight Risk (Level 2 of 4) of excessive rainfall has been issued for eastern Pennsylvania, northwest New Jersey, and parts of southern New York, including the Catskills and Poconos. Storms may train over saturated ground, increasing the risk of flash flooding in urban and low-lying areas.
In South Texas, another Slight Risk remains in place as a moisture-rich airmass fuels intense downpours along the Rio Grande Valley. Locally heavy rain could quickly overwhelm drainage systems in cities like Laredo, McAllen, and Brownsville.
Further north, the Storm Prediction Center has flagged the Tennessee Valley and southern Appalachians for severe storms, with large hail and damaging gusts possible in Nashville, Knoxville, and Asheville. A separate storm threat exists across South Texas as another upper-level disturbance slides through late Thursday.
Cooler-than-normal highs will persist across much of the East and South, while temperatures soar into the 90s and low 100s from California’s Central Valley to the Desert Southwest.
Storms will shift east Friday, but flash flood concerns may linger into New England and the central Gulf Coast.
