From drought to floods?

There's an old weather axiom that it takes a flood to break a drought. That may well occur this week as a firehose of moisture enters Mecklenburg County and surrounding areas. Meanwhile, today (Sunday) looks to be cloudy and mostly dry with afternoon highs in the mid-70s. A slight chance of showers is in the forecast starting late this afternoon.

The overall weekly weather picture is one of another slow moving low pressure system. That feature is over Louisiana this morning, and its eastward progress is being slowed by strong high pressure over the Great Lakes area. Counterclockwise airflow around the low center is pumping moisture northward, creating the potential for an extended period of abundant rainfall which will arrive tonight.

Counties to the west and south of Mecklenburg are already under a Flood Watch, and it wouldn't be surprising if that Watch was extended into the local area given this outlook through Wednesday morning:

Even more rain will collect in county gauges through the end of the week, with four inches not out of the question in some locales. Be alert for flooding near creeks and rivers, along with water ponding on road surfaces during the heaviest rainfall.

Temperatures this week will start out lower than May averages, with afternoon highs only in the upper 60s to low 70s Monday and Tuesday. As warmer air enters the area those readings will climb into the 80s by the end of the work week. Meanwhile, keep that rain gear handy!