While Georgia and South Carolina are expected to receive historic amounts of rain from Hurricane Debby, Charlotte could get several inches of rain throughout the week as the Category 1 storm moves toward the Carolina coast.
While a small amount of rain is expected, people should still take precautions in case weather conditions change throughout the week, said Andrew Kimball, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.
“There’s still a lot of uncertainty around the amount of rainfall and there’s still a chance that we could see some really heavy rainfall coming our way if the model changes,” he said. “So people should still prepare for heavy rainfall and flash flooding, even though we don’t expect too many impacts at the moment with the current forecast.”
By the time Debby reaches North Carolina, the storm is expected to have weakened to a tropical storm, The News & Observer reported.
Kimball said there would be no major impact on Charlotte from Monday through Wednesday.
Debby was the cause of more than 250 flight cancellations or delays at Charlotte Douglas International Airport as of Monday morning.
Monday and Tuesday will see scattered showers and clouds that will keep temperatures in the mid-80s, Kimball said. Tuesday and Wednesday will be slightly windy, but “not expected to be a major problem.”
Heavier rainfall is expected later Thursday and Friday, Kimball said. Charlotte is expected to see 2 to 4 inches during the week, while areas east of Charlotte could get closer to 6 to 8 inches.
The News & Observer also reported that the southeast region, including Wilmington, Jacksonville and Lumberton, could see 16 inches. Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill are expecting up to 8 inches.
Kimball said Charlotte is currently expected to be on the western side of the storm. However, if Debby’s path were to shift from northeast to west in South Carolina toward the Upstate, Charlotte could potentially see heavier rainfall.
“But right now, most of the guidance that I’m looking at doesn’t do that,” Kimball said. “That’s still a possibility, but it’s not expected.”
