First Warning Forecast | Pockets Of Rain Today, Just The Appetizers.

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. (WSAZ) – We’ve been tracking pockets of sunshine as well as pockets of rainfall this morning, and this afternoon should only see an increase in both cloud cover and these areas of rain. Temperatures initially will be racing toward the 80s, but then be knocked back into the 70s in the showers. Despite the at-times murky weather, this still will be your best opportunity to get prepared for tomorrow’s and Wednesday’s rains when the remnants of Ida get here. Virtually every tributary of the Ohio, Kanawha, and Guyandotte rivers are at-risk for flooding should the kind of water we’re looking at coming from Ida be realized across the entire basin. If you live in an area that is vulnerable either to street/culvert flooding, or live along a small creek/river that floods a few times per year, it would be a good idea to take precautions in advance before it gets too wet. It can be as simple as moving inside (or putting up) lawn furniture or other items you don’t want to get washed away to as intricate as figuring out your alternate routes should your local river runs out of its banks for Wednesday morning’s drive.

Current modeling projects the brunt of what’s left of Ida to come directly across the Tri-State Tuesday afternoon through a good chunk of Wednesday, with a swath of 3″- 5″ of rain in tow. It’s too early to be extremely precise about which river basin is going to get the most, but suffice it to say whatever this storm has to offer will end up coming through. It’s best that everyone take precautions as if it’s their area is the one that gets hit the worst for rain. Not everyone lives near a flood zone, so the impacts won’t be felt equally, but it’s important to be safer rather than sorry.

As the rains dwindle to just some departing drizzle Thursday morning, now the bigger rivers take on this water, and by then we’ll have an idea of just how far they will rise in response, all the way to the Ohio River in the days beyond. Meanwhile, the skies will eventually clear out and like most post-storm scenarios, we’ll be treated to some of our best weather in weeks. Look for highs to hang out in the upper 70s and lower 80s with dry sunshine– leading into a Holiday weekend no less! Unfortunately though, it looks like there’s going to be some folks that are going to have to spend some of that time cleaning up.

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