Brewing 'Bomb Cyclone' Aims For East Coast: See VA Impacts

VIRGINIA — Northern Virginia could see its wettest day in months Wednesday as a rapidly strengthening storm is expected to sweep across the eastern United States, according to forecasters.

A developing bomb cyclone fed by an atmospheric river — a narrow plume of deep moisture originating from the tropics — is predicted to unleash torrential rain and powerful winds from the Appalachians to the Atlantic, snarling travel and triggering possible flooding and power outages, Accuweather meteorologists warned.

As downpours and thunderstorms soak the Southeast into Tuesday night, rains will move northward into the central Appalachians, mid-Atlantic and southern New England regions, according to Accuweather.

"The storm will quickly reorganize along the upper mid-Atlantic coast Wednesday," Accuweather said Tuesday. "This new storm center will become the bomb cyclone, amplifying the rain from the Appalachians to the Atlantic beaches and the wind along the Atlantic coast as it moves northward through Wednesday night."

According to the National Weather Service, some parts of Northern Virginia could see excessive rainfall totaling as much as 2.5 inches starting Tuesday night and continuing into Wednesday.

Northern Virginia could use a soaking rain. According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, as of Dec. 5, most of the state was in moderate drought conditions, while from Loudoun County in the north along the Potomac River to the Chesapeake Bay are listed as severe drought status. A handful of southwestern counties are considered abnormally dry.

"Locally severe" thunderstorms are also possible Wednesday, with the chance of a few tornadoes in part of the mid-Atlantic, AccuWeather said.

In its Tuesday forecast, the Capital Weather Gang said the predicted rainfall could help ease drought conditions across the region.

"At least 1 to 2 inches of rain should fall — the most from any storm in more than two months," the Capital Weather Gang said.

The cold front fueling the precipitation could also bring gusty winds topping 30 mph as downpours move through the state.

"Once the front passes, sharply colder air will spill into the region Wednesday night into Thursday," the Capital Weather Gang said. "Snow is not expected from this storm in the D.C. area, but some will occur in the mountains to the west."

Here's the latest D.C. area forecast through Friday, according to the National Weather Service:

Tuesday Night: A chance of showers before 7pm, then rain, mainly after 10pm. Patchy fog. Low around 55. South wind 6 to 9 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New precipitation amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.

Wednesday: Rain. The rain could be heavy at times. Patchy fog before 1pm. Temperature rising to near 64 by 10am, then falling to around 48 during the remainder of the day. Breezy, with a south wind 10 to 15 mph becoming northwest 19 to 24 mph in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 33 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New precipitation amounts between 1 and 2 inches possible.

Wednesday Night: A chance of rain before 10pm. Cloudy during the early evening, then gradual clearing, with a low around 32. Breezy, with a west wind 18 to 23 mph decreasing to 10 to 15 mph after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 32 mph. Chance of precipitation is 40%.

Thursday: Sunny, with a high near 41. West wind 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.

Thursday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 25.

Friday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 40.