Rain & Storms Tuesday - FOX Carolina 21

Rain & Storms Tuesday

Good morning!  Many spots are waking up to the sound of rain falling on the rooftop - and if you're like me, that makes it even harder to actually get out of bed!  Voters in Western North Carolina may also be tempted to stay inside with rain and storms in our Tuesday forecast, but it's so important to head to the polls - so just prepare yourself with the rain gear before you leave home.

A cold front will approach through the day.  With southerly winds out ahead of the front, we'll see scattered rain and thunderstorms throughout the day.  We're primarily dealing with rain showers this morning, while the afternoon will bring a bit higher chance for thunderstorms (given more heat).  Any thunderstorms could produce lots of lightning and heavy downpours - and the rain could reduce visibilities on the roads, so use caution!

Highs will reach the low to mid 70s in the Mountains, while Upstate spots will hit the upper 70s.  Temperatures will stay similar on Wednesday, and with the front crossing the area on Wednesday, we'll keep high rain and t-storm chances in the forecast. 

The Storm Prediction Center has placed our area in the general t-storm risk area for today, so while a severe storm can't be ruled out, it's more likely that we see 'garden-variety' storms that produce heavy rainfall rates and frequent lightning.  Tomorrow the SPC has placed areas just to our east in the Slight Risk region - so we may have to watch for a higher chance of damaging wind gusts with storms tomorrow.  Here are the Convective Outlooks for today and tomorrow.

Once the front passes, slightly cooler and drier air will settle in for the end of the week and weekend.  Thursday and Friday will bring sunshine and high temperatures a bit below-normal.  Morning temperatures will fall back into the 40s (Mountains) and 50s (Upstate), so we'll have some cooler mornings that may require a light jacket or sweatshirt.