UPDATE [8:17 p.m.]: The National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm warning until 9 p.m. for areas of southwest Fulton and Douglas counties, as well as northwest Coweta County.
A severe thunderstorm was located near Bill Arp Road in Douglasville shortly after 8:15 p.m. It was moving southwest at 15 mph, according to the NWS.
There’s a chance of 60 mph wind gusts that could cause damages to roofs, siding and trees. For protection, move to an interior room on the lowest floor of your building.
ORIGINAL STORY: With more clouds than sunshine in Wednesday’s forecast, areas that will get wet in this afternoon’s offering of storms are a little harder to pinpoint.
Channel 2 Action News meteorologist Brian Monahan said the heaviest downpours so far this week have been concentrated along I-20, but there is a better chance for “rain anywhere, at any time this afternoon” in metro Atlanta and across North Georgia.
“We’re in this pattern of showers and storms all around North Georgia,” Monahan said. “It doesn’t mean everybody gets the rain everyday, but where we do, that rain will be on the heavy side.”
Monahan expects scattered showers and storms to fire up around lunchtime Wednesday before becoming more widespread about mid- to late afternoon. By about 5 p.m., just in time for the evening drive, he said there should be “a good coverage of downpours around North Georgia.”
He expects rain chances to remain elevated at about 60% through sunset, and then storms will gradually settle down through the overnight hours.
Wednesday shouldn’t be a completely gray day. Monahan is calling for five hours of sunshine in between the clouds and showers, and temperatures should be below average with highs in the lower to mid-80s. Atlanta’s projected high is 83 degrees.
Thursday should get a bit more sunshine, about seven hours, and rain should be more scattered as well, according to Monahan. That trend of more sunshine, less rain will continue into the weekend, but the humidity is not going anywhere.
“All the way through the end of the week, Saturday and Sunday and the Fourth of July as well, it’s going to stay muggy across North Georgia, but the amount of rain is going to start to drop,” Monahan said.
Credit: Channel 2 Action News
Credit: Channel 2 Action News
Looking ahead to the holiday weekend, he said there will be some showers and storms in the mix but it will not be a washout. Conditions are looking mostly dry but very humid for those planning to run the AJC Peachtree Road Race on Monday morning, according to the latest forecast.
“Temperatures, they are going to be heating up,” Monahan said. “We’ll be in the mid- to upper 80s. Not as cool as it’s been, relatively, with the rain and storms, and more sunshine around as we go through the holiday weekend.”
Expect a high of 89 degrees Monday for Independence Day celebrations, he said.
Credit: Channel 2 Action News
Credit: Channel 2 Action News
» For a detailed forecast, visit The Atlanta Journal-Constitution weather page.
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