The rain that began falling over the weekend in New York City and across the tristate area is expected to continue until Wednesday morning, according to the National Weather Service.
Showers were anticipated overnight with the potential for thunderstorms, weather service forecasters warned. Rain is expected continue nearly all day Tuesday, with the heaviest rain expected earlier in the day.
The chance of precipitation in Central Park won’t dip below 80% until 9 p.m. on Tuesday, and even then it will remain above 50%, according to the weather service.
“Showers with a chance of thunderstorms in the evening [on Tuesday], then a chance of showers with a slight chance of thunderstorms after midnight,” the meteorologists wrote. “Some thunderstorms may produce heavy rainfall in the evening.”
After some showers Sunday, steady rain began Monday morning and was expected to continue all day. Though flash flooding risks were minimal, forecasters warned of potential issues in poor drainage areas because of the consistent showers.
Relief from the rain is not guaranteed Wednesday. Thunderstorms are still possible in the afternoon, and the chance of rain remains 50%. However, all storm systems are expected to clear the area overnight Wednesday, dropping the chance of precipitation below 5%.
The conditions for nonstop rain were created by a low pressure system that parked over the Ohio Valley, meteorologists said. Exactly where the heaviest rainfall would occur remained unclear to forecasters Monday.
Weather prediction models and experts were struggling to pinpoint exactly where bands of wet weather from the Atlantic Ocean would strike hardest, and that uncertainty extended into Tuesday’s forecast. However, because of the stationary low pressure system, almost the entire region was expected to get at least some rain.
“Bottom line, expect coverage to increase across the area through this afternoon,” National Weather Service meteorologists wrote Monday. “Rainfall amounts and location will likely have to be adjusted.”
The only flood watches were issued north of Newburg, Orange County, and Danbury, Conn., according to the weather service. The five boroughs and Long Island were not expected to face severe weather, only constant rain.
