Hazardous Weather Outlook In NJ, PA Thanksgiving Weekend Forecast

Despite the frigid cold, you'd better get that holiday shopping done quickly – even if the sales do extend to the weekend.

The National Weather Service has issued a hazardous weather outlook for the weekend, saying there is the potential for heavy rain on Saturday afternoon and evening, and again on Monday, in New Jersey and eastern Pennsylvania.

The rain may result in minor flooding of rivers and creeks, along with some roadways and areas of poor drainage, according to the NWS. The frigid cold is supposed to lift by Saturday afternoon, rising from the teens to the 30s.

While frigid weather is forecast to continue into Friday, rain and spotty ice will spread across portions of Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, according to AccuWeather.

The rain will end from west to east on Saturday night. However, enough rain may fall to cause flooding in poor drainage areas for a time on Saturday, according to AccuWeather. Travel conditions are expected to substantially improve across the region for the journey home on Sunday.

Here is the forecast:

• Friday: Sunny, with a high near 25. Light and variable wind becoming southwest around 6 mph in the morning.
• Friday night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 23. South wind around 5 mph becoming calm in the evening.
• Saturday: Rain, mainly after 1pm. High near 43. Calm wind becoming east around 5 mph in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible.
• Saturday night: Rain, mainly before 1am. The rain could be heavy at times. Low around 39. East wind around 6 mph becoming calm in the evening. Chance of precipitation is 90%. New precipitation amounts between 1 and 2 inches possible.
• Sunday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 51. North wind 5 to 10 mph.
• Sunday night: A slight chance of rain after 1am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 36. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
• Monday: Rain likely, mainly before 1pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 46. Chance of precipitation is 70%.

Tom Davis photos