Expect 1 to 2 inches of rain. Flash flooding a concern.
View full sizeA morning haze envelopes the Syracuse University campus Friday morning.Syracuse, NY – A week so far noteworthy for extreme heat appears likely to end with extreme rain.
A slow-moving cold front is expected to crawl into Central New York by late morning, bringing the onset of showers and thunderstorms that should become more widespread and build into a steady downpour through the day and into the night, National Weather Service forecasters say.
Between 1 and 2 inches of rain could fall before the system departs for good, perhaps as late as Saturday morning, said Steven Ippoliti, a forecaster at the National Weather Service office in Binghamton.
Localized areas could get a heavier soaking as the cold front drags up warm, moist air from Gulf of Mexico and a dying tropical depression over Mexico, said Mike Jurewicz, another forecaster at the Binghamton office.
Forecasters are particularly concerned about potential flash flooding in the Adirondack and Catskill mountains in eastern New York and and Pocono Mountains of northeast Pennsylvania, Ippoliti said. Their clay soils don’t absorb rain as quickly as sandy flatland soils and their steeper terrain makes water run down faster into small creeks.
“When they rise they can rise very quickly, and then as they join other creeks and streams they can rise real quick,” Ippoliti said. Campers along streams in those areas could see a quick rise in water and flash flooding, even if it isn’t raining overhead, he said.
The rain should moderate temperatures somewhat, at least compared with the sunny, hot, sticky weather that blanketed the region Monday through Thursday.
Daytime highs hit 94 on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday and 93 on Wednesday, giving Central New York its first four-day heat wave since June 2005.
Look for temperatures to top off in the upper 80s today and the lower 80s Saturday, Ippoliti said.
Don’t worry, summer lovers – sunshine and mid-80s temperatures are expected on Sunday and the thermometer is expected to climb back to the high 80s through much of next week.
Click here for Syracuse.com’s forecast.
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