Chance for pop-up showers, severe weather continues through Monday

By Kat Campbell, WRAL meteorologist

Raleigh, N.C. — Showers, some of them heavy at times, have been hitting certain parts of the Triangle on Sunday. That, mixed with heat and humidity has made for a challenging weather day.

We are at a Level 1 for severe storms, meaning there’s a chance storms may pop up across the Triangle through the afternoon and into the evening.

We are under a level 1 (out of 5) risk for severe storms today meaning although widespread storms are expected only a few have the potential to become severe with winds gusting up to 60 mph,” WRAL meteorologist Kat Campbell said. “Our main concerns this evening will be lightning, heavy rain, and gusty winds. There is ample moisture in the atmosphere for these storms to tap into to produce heavy rain quickly.”

Campbell reports Coats Crossroads in Johnston County reported over an inch of rain in less than 30 minutes after one of these afternoon storms popped up

“Also remember that if you can hear thunder (even if it’s not raining and looks sunny) you are close enough to get struck by lightning and need to head inside immediately,” Campbell said. “Wait out the storm 30 minutes from the last rumble of thunder before heading outside.”

The storms started rolling through the viewing area around 2 p.m. There were thunderstorm warning for counties in the northeast part of the state. Most of those warnings were slated through midnight.

Otherwise, the heat continues to dominate the day. Sunday’s temperatures reached the low 90s but with the humidity, it was feeling close to 100 in Raleigh. Further south, the heat index was reaching triple digits with hopes the showers would eventually cool things down.

“Due to the scattered nature of these storms I highly recommend downloading the WRAL Weather App if you have outdoor activities planned this evening,” Campbell said.

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The pattern of scattered storms and rain will carry over into the work week, with the greatest chance for precipitation on Monday. The rest of the week will see a 30 percent chance of precipitation. It will be hot, but with highs in the upper 80s to low 90s, it will not be as hot as last week.