Flooding Potential in East

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Flooding Potential in East
8:30 AM EST, December 17, 2003

A developing east coast storm, the third
in a series since the beginning of
December, will threaten flooding in
parts of the northeast and mid-Atlantic
today.

Flood watches are up from parts of
Maryland and Delaware north to Maine,
including Philadelphia, New York and
Boston. Rainfall totals of around 1" are
expected in these areas with much of
that falling in less than 6 hours.
Combine the heavy rain with a quick
warmup and a solid snowpack in many
areas, and the potential exists for
widespread flooding. WeatherBug
cameras in Harriman, NY, Sugarloaf,
PA, and Brookline, NH showed a solid
snowpack.

The heaviest rain through early
Wednesday morning had fallen from
the Washington, DC to Philadelphia
and northeast toward the Catskills of
southern New York. A WeatherBug live
sensor in Perryville, MD picked up 0.71"
while 0.61" had fallen in Blairstown, NJ.
The northeast and mid-Atlantic have
already seen well above normal
precipitation so far in December,
continuing the wet pattern seen since
August 2002. WeatherBug live sensors
in Bourne, MA and Hampton, VA have
both seen over 5" of rain so far in
December.

The precipitation will gradually end
across the mid-Atlantic by Wednesday
evening and will exit northern New
England by dawn Thursday. However,
many rivers and streams may take a
while to fall below flood stage after the
precipitation ends.