For the first time in a few days Phoenix woke up to dry, calm conditions, but Wednesday evening holds greater scattered storm opportunities across the Valley and most of the state.
With ample and increasing moisture throughout the day, showers and storms will develop in high terrains Aug. 12, expanding to the Valley by the evening and overnight. Rainfall estimates go as high as half an inch in the Valley and upwards of 2 inches along the Mogollon Rim by the time it's all over on Thursday, Aug. 13.
Bursts of heavy rainfall could make local totals higher, so a flood watch is in effect in central and all of northern Arizona. That includes parts of northeast Maricopa, northern Pinal and Gila counties for greater rainfall and possible flash flooding
in bodies of water, washes and low-lying areas.
A few more isolated storms will be possible Thursday afternoon, but the flooding threat will fall off by then.
Gutsy winds, dust and lightning are all still possible, but the main threat for Wednesday is the heavy rainfall, as opposed to the severe storm risk we faced earlier in the week. Crews are still in the thick of cleaning up debris and fallen trees while restoring utilities across the area after scattered and severe storms Sunday night and Monday night.
All the incoming storms are topping off the impressive rainfall we’ve seen this past week. Parts of the West Valley have gotten 1.25 to 2+ inches and now parts of East Valley may have the opportunity to catch up.
More good news is that temperatures remain below average for the rest of the week, and even below 100 for many on Wednesday and Thursday. Heading into the weekend, it gets a little drier and warmer, as high pressure that’s currently off to the east starts to inch back toward Arizona. We’ll get back to the normal 100s during the weekend and up to 110 by Monday.
Meteorologist Tevian Whitehurst covers extreme weather and climate for The Republic and azcentral.com. Follow him at @TevianWX on Instagram and Facebook (Meteorologist Tevian Whitehurst).
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Heavy rain is possible in metro Phoenix. Here's the forecast
