While Gaston County is seeing sunny skies today, exactly what to expect from the approaching tropical depression makes the forecast a little iffy, according to the National Weather Service.
The forecast so far looks fairly harmless, but the Weather Service has issued a hazardous weather outlook statement. It reads:
Depending on its exact motion and track, Tropical Depression Nine could bring impacts such as heavy rainfall, nuisance flooding, and gusty winds Monday into Tuesday night over the I-77 Corridor. The heavy rainfall and flood threat may linger into early Wednesday, however confidence with regards to this scenario remains low at this time.
STORM TRACKER: Monitor the latest tropical developments here.
North Carolina weather radar
The Wilmington area is expected to see 2 to 4 inches of rain from Tropical Depression Nine. But isolated areas could get up to 8 inches.
What to expect in Gastonia
The National Weather Service is calling for some rain on Monday and Tuesday though amounts could change as Tropical Depression Nine, which could become Hurricane Imelda, plows ahead.
Here’s a look at the forecast:
Sunday: Mostly sunny skies with a high around 80 and low of 65.
Monday: A chance of showers and thunderstorms, then showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm after 5 p.m. Patchy fog between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. Otherwise, cloudy, with a high near 73. A 50% chance of showers and thunderstorms. Low of 63.
Tuesday: A 50% chance of showers with winds at about 10 to 14 mph. Patchy fog after 10 a.m. High near 70. In the evening, there is a 20% chance of showers with a low around 60North northeast wind 10 to 14 mph, with gusts as high as 24 mph.
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Are you prepared?
The American Red Cross offers this advice to prepare for a potential hurricane:
Gather food, water and medicine.
Organize supplies into a go-kit and a stay-at-home kit.
Go-Kit: at least three days of supplies that you can carry with you. Include backup batteries and chargers for your devices (cell phone, CPAP, wheelchair, etc.)
Stay-at-Home Kit: at least two weeks of supplies.
Have a one-month supply of medication in a child-proof container and medical supplies or equipment.
Keep personal, financial and medical records safe and easy to access (hard copies or securely backed up). Consider keeping a list of your medications and dosages on a small card to carry with you.
What is flash flooding?
Flash flooding usually begins within six hours, but often within three hours, of heavy rain or mass amounts of water accumulating in an area, according to the National Weather Service.
This type of flooding usually happens very quickly and catches people off guard. It can be caused by a number of things, but is often due to extremely heavy rainfall from thunderstorms.
“The intensity of the rainfall, the location and distribution of the rainfall, the land use and topography, vegetation types and growth/density, soil type, and soil water-content all determine just how quickly the flash flooding may occur, and influence where it may occur,” writes the National Weather Service.
Flood watch vs. flood warning: What is the difference?
A flood watch and a flood warning are two different things. Here’s the difference.
A flood watch indicates that the conditions are favorable to flooding in an area that is under a watch. These flood watches are usually issued hours and even days ahead of the weather event that could cause the flooding.
A flood warning means that the flooding that could be harmful and poses a serious threat to property and people is expected. This too can be issued hours and days ahead of time based on forecast predictions.
Anytime flooding is a risk people should use caution. Water levels can change rapidly during periods of heavy rainfall.
This article originally appeared on The Gaston Gazette: Will Gaston County feel the impact of what could be Hurricane Imelda?