Isaias Will Fly By Us Tomorrow with Flooding Rain to the West and Strong Gusts to the East

Good morning! Just a quick update on Isaias regarding timing and what to expect. I’m still holding onto my forecasted general track from last Thursday, which kept Isaias off the coast of Florida (no landfall there), but making landfall between Myrtle and Morehead, followed by a track up I95 from Delmarva, AC, LI to Maine. The tricky part now is who gets the heaviest rainfall (West of track) and who gets the strongest wind gusts (East of track). While this not Sandy (widespread destruction wise), Isaias is nothing to sneeze as coastal sections will see tropical storm to hurricane force wind gusts (and strong enough inland to cause down tree limbs leading to widespread power outages) and flooding downpours inland. Isolated tornadoes can’t be ruled out, usually on the northeast side of tropical cyclones. This is a serious storm and shouldn’t be taken lightly.

So here’s my take, subject to continuing subtle adjustments, on who should expect what and when. In terms where to see heavy flooding rainfall, at this point it looks like the area most impacted will be well away from the coast. From Raleigh to Richmond, from Washington DC to Wilmington, from Philly to Port Jervis (into E PA) and Middletown (NY) up to Montpelier. Of course this line of heavy rainfall isn’t etched in stone but it’s to give you general thinking. 3-6″ in heaviest areas, with perhaps isolated higher amounts are possible. Further East, amounts drop down to an 1-2″.

In terms of the strongest wind gusts, current thinking and from the latest European would be from the Delmarva up the Jersey shore (40-60mph with possibly hurricane force winds), into NYC and Long Island, on up through eastern parts of CT and Mass, RI, the Cape, the Seacoast and N NH and ME.

Lastly on timing, remember Isaias really accelerates as it travels NE. Rain moves through NC before sunrise Tuesday, into DC late morning, then into NJ late morning/afternoon, ending in Northern New England around midnight. NJ clears out well before sundown.

Finally, in terms of prep, to be safe I’d strongly recommend bringing any loose items indoors, park cars away from trees, and charge all electronics. That’s it for now. I MAY try and go LIVE to share beach conditions on my Twitter or Instagram page down the Jersey shore during the height of the storm tomorrow. So be sure to follow me if you haven’t yet OR check back here on my website and scroll down to Twitter and Instagram links. Stay safe, try not to travel tomorrow if you don’t have to and remember, weather never sleeps!