ROANOKE, Va. – 7 PM Update
Well the wind and rain is certainly here, and I can hear it as I write this.
The main band of heavy rain is currently sweeping to the east of I-81 and is expected to bring gusty winds and downpours over the next few hours. This will occur on and off until we clear up later tonight.
Following the passage of that cold front, we’ll get pleasant conditions tomorrow, with temperatures in the 60s with a bit of a breeze.
Wind advisories in the NRV will expire at 7 am tomorrow.
Saturday Morning
As a cold front moves through today, we are going to see a drastic change compared to what we had yesterday.
The highs are going to be a lot more seasonable today with temperatures being in the upper 60s to mid 70s, on average. There are some outliers in this such as parts of Southside reaching the upper 70s and parts of the NRV only getting to the lower 60s.
We are still experiencing dry conditions throughout the region.
Southside, parts of the NRV and parts of the Roanoke are are currently dry, where as if you travel north you will experience more drought-like conditions. The Highlands is currently the driest with a severe drought.
Rain will be associated with this cold front passage, but will not provide sufficient enough amounts to get us out of this dry period. Most places won’t see 0.25″ except for areas around Danville and Lynchburg.
The main concern with this system in particular is the possibility of strong wind gusts. The region can expect the winds to get up to around 35 mph with the strongest being situated along the Blue Ridge. These winds will peak around mid-day and should last through the night.
Quick reminder: wind gusts are not sustained winds, but rather a quick burst such as a breeze!
After the rain we have clear skies ahead with minimal rain chances throughout the week. We will keep our fall-like temperatures and have sunshine stick around for the foreseeable future!