Heavy Rains and Flooding

From the "Like we need THIS" Department:

Wednesday's warm temperatures may come at a price – heavy rain and potential flooding Thursday.

The heavy rain Wednesday was south of Charlotte by 9 p.m., but it's likely to return late this morning and could create significant flooding, said Doug Outlaw, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Greer, S.C.

By Wednesday evening, the weather service had posted a flood watch for several Charlotte-area counties, including Mecklenburg, Union, Cabarrus, Gaston, Lincoln, Catawba and Iredell counties.

Outlaw said some spots could see as much as three inches of rain.

“That much rain will cause streams and creeks to rise rapidly and lead to potential flooding,” he said. “Folks in low-lying areas need to be very cautious of rising water on Thursday.”

The heaviest rain will be north of Charlotte, but parts of the city could receive up to three inches, particularly if storms line up and pass over the same area, he said.

The framework for the rain and storms is warm weather. Temperatures climbed from the 50s Tuesday evening into the lower and middle 60s by daybreak. It lingered in the 60s Wednesday and is expected to climb back into the low 60s today.

That's a big departure from the colder-than-normal temperatures in November and early December. Last month was the fifth-coldest November in Charlotte weather history. Until Wednesday, December had started as the coldest in eight years.

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To top it off it's supposed to dip back down Friday into the lower 40s. Can you say Cold and flu season!