Waterlogged commuters got a bit of a break during the early stages of Tuesday’s morning commute, but the drive home is expected to be much wetter, forecasters said.
Channel 2 Action News meteorologist Karen Minton said that the next round of heavy rain could move into metro Atlanta just in time for the Tuesday evening rush hour.
The National Weather Service said the heavy rain should finally exit the area Wednesday afternoon.
A wide swath of the state from Atlanta southward to around Americus remains under a flood watch until Wednesday afternoon.
Meanwhile, the recent rains have put a dent in Georgia’s drought.
State climatologist Bill Murphey said drought designations were dropped last week for Hall, Lumpkin, White and Habersham counties, and this week’s heavy rain should help in other Georgia counties where drought conditions persist.
Most of metro Atlanta remains in a moderate to extreme drought.
“I definitely would anticipate some improvement this week pretty much across the entire state,” Murphey told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “This is beneficial rainfall that helps to recharge stream flows as well as reservoirs.”
Lake Lanier, the region’s primary source for drinking water, is “doing a good bit better” with the recent rains, Murphey said.
Lanier’s level early Tuesday of 1,064.63 feet above sea level was still about six feet below full pool, but was six feet over the lake’s level at the beginning of the year.
Metro Atlanta rainfall since the showers began Sunday afternoon ranged from 1.42 inches in Marietta and 1.72 inches in Dunwoody to 1.99 inches at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport and 2.37 inches in Peachtree City.
Heavier rain was reported across central Georgia, where Columbus recorded 3.4 inches through 7 a.m. Tuesday, Macon 3.79 inches and Pine Mountain 4.52 inches.
So far this year, Atlanta’s official rain gauge at the airport has recorded 7.47 inches of rain, a surplus of 1.45 inches. Going back to Dec. 1, Atlanta has received 13.40 inches of rain, a surplus for that period of 3.48 inches.
Minton’s forecast calls for a 100 percent chance of rain Tuesday, diminishing to 90 percent Wednesday morning. Minton said additional rainfall of 2 to 4 inches is possible before the rain ends Wednesday afternoon.
Highs will be in the 50s, with lows early Wednesday in the 40s.
Thursday and Friday should be sunny, with highs in the upper 50s and lows in the mid-30s, Minton said.
There’s a 40 percent chance of rain Saturday, with highs in the 40s and lows in the 30s.
The Weather Service said Saturday’s rain could be mixed with snow across extreme north Georgia.
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