Friday is fizzling off to a bang with severe storms striking across College Park, Md. faster than students can flock to happy hour. The frenzy of activity kicked off with a cold front that creeped into our area this afternoon and kicked off some of the downpour. Instability will feed these storms well into tonight, so exercise caution if traveling home for the holidays this weekend.
Tonight:
A strong surface low egged on by upper-level instability maintains the downpour and organize these storms into something potentially more dangerous. Southerly winds will funnel in additional moisture, exacerbating the already high dew points dampening the region. A flash flood watch is in effect until late tonight, so drivers should carefully weave their way home tonight. Isolated rain totals can exceed 3 inches, and the averaged total is likely to settle somewhere between 1-1.5 inches. While unlikely for our region, an isolated tornado or two cannot be ruled out, given the severity of the storms. Be sure to know that a warning means a tornado is imminent, while a watch simply means conditions are favorable for one to spin-up.
Tomorrow (Saturday):
Tomorrow, the sun gives us a reprieve from the stormy action, although we might still have some leftover showers to welcome us into Saturday. The high temperatures will stretch into the upper 70s, however the day will get progressively less muggy as it wears on. Southerly winds will be light and variable, around 5-11 mph. Lows will dip into the 50s once clouds crowd the sky toward the evening hours. Overall, the holiday weekend should be nicer than today, with a few showers sprinkled in here and there. Hopefully, nothing that is going to interrupt any egg hunts!
a.m. (via QPF )
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