Weather

Here's When Florence May Arrive In Herndon

As Hurricane Florence lashes the coast, forecasts suggest its remnants may head toward us soon.

HERNDON, VA -- Herndon residents were spared the wrath of Hurricane Florence, which veered well south of Virginia and ended up making landfall on the coast of North Carolina -- where it continues to pound the state Friday. But forecasts indicate that its remnants may head in our direction, and could bring some damaging flooding with it.

The storm is expected to slowly drift inland into the Carolinas, dumping huge quantities of rain and causing massive flooding that could affect millions of people. Experts believe the storm will weaken slowly because a large portion of it remains over water.

The storm isn't expected to start to head out of the Carolinas until Sunday, according to the National Weather Service. It may drift over southwest Virginia Monday morning and then loop toward the northeast. Currently, its remnants look most likely to head north of the D.C. region, but we could get some decent rainfall totals because the storm's footprint is so wide. That would most likely happen Monday and Tuesday.

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

(For more news and information like this, subscribe to the Herndon Patch for free. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app; download the free Patch Android app here. Don’t forget to like us on Facebook!)

NWS predicts that the D.C. area will get 1.1 inches of rain -- certainly not anything we can't handle. But with the ground already saturated, it could lead to more flooding.

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

"If the remnants track far enough east, Northern Virginia, Maryland, and Washington, may see a period of heavy rain," the Washington Post's Capital Weather Gang writes. "In these areas, the ground has already been saturated by weeks of higher-than-normal rainfall. Flash flooding, downed trees and power outages will be possible in these regions early next week before Florence finally departs the East Coast on Wednesday or Thursday."

IN SPACE - SEPTEMBER 14: In this NOAA satellite handout image , shows Hurricane Florence as it made landfall near Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina on September 14, 2018. The National Hurricane Center reported Florence had sustained winds of 90 mph at landfall and was moving slowly westward at 6 mph. (Photo by NOAA via Getty Images)

Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.