Weather

Rare Summer Nor'easter Expected For PA This Weekend

A bad storm is expected to come to Pennsylvania and stop and churn for hours.

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Pennsylvania could get walloped with the worst storm of the summer this weekend, and it's supposed to be one you normally see in October. A rare summer nor'easter is poised to strike the region, bringing thunderstorms, gusty winds and drenching downpours.

The National Weather Service says the storm will follow the protocol of a nor'easter: Move up from the South, stop in its tracks and churn, producing a flooding risk.

The rare storm will be unusual since it will unleash steady rain for six to 10 hours or more in many locations as it moves across the region, according to AccuWeather. Typically in the summer, rainfall is limited to a few hours in the absence of a tropical rainstorm.

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Update: PA Forecast Improves For Saturday

"This type of setup has the potential to deliver very heavy rainfall and raise the risk of flooding," AccuWeather Chief Meteorologist Elliot Abrams said in a release.

Find out what's happening in Philadelphiafor free with the latest updates from Patch.

Motorists from Pennsylvania, New Jersey, West Virginia, Maryland, Virginia and Delaware are likely to face difficult travel due to persistent downpours, excess water on the road and poor visibility, according to AccuWeather.

Enough rain can fall to cause flash and urban flooding. Small stream flooding is also possible as several inches of rain may fall on some locations, according to AccuWeather. This threat will be greatest from Philadelphia and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, to Baltimore and Washington, D.C.

Temperatures are also expected to drop to fall-like levels.

South Jersey and eastern Pennsylvania are expected to get the worst of it.

Here is the forecast:

  • Friday: Partly sunny, with a high near 84. East wind 5 to 7 mph.
  • Friday night: A chance of showers and thunderstorms, then showers and possibly a thunderstorm after 10pm. Some of the storms could produce gusty winds and heavy rain. Low around 67. Calm wind becoming northeast 5 to 7 mph after midnight. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New rainfall amounts between a half and three quarters of an inch possible.
  • Saturday: Showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm. Some of the storms could produce heavy rain. Cloudy, with a high near 72. Northeast wind 9 to 16 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%. New precipitation amounts between a half and three quarters of an inch possible.
  • Saturday night: A chance of showers. Cloudy, with a low around 62. Northeast wind 14 to 16 mph. Chance of precipitation is 40%. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible.
  • Sunday: Partly sunny, with a high near 77. Northeast wind 11 to 14 mph.

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