Extreme heat, severe storms threaten Charlotte ahead of Tropical Depression Fred
Extreme heat, coupled with hail and damaging winds from severe storms, threaten the Charlotte area on Saturday, National Weather Service meteorologists warned.
The alerts come days ahead of Tropical Depression Fred, which is still expected to dump heavy rain on the region, according to the NWS.
Charlotte can expect a blistering heat index of 103 on Saturday, according to the NWS 9 a.m. Saturday forecast.
The heat index is what the temperature feels like when humidity levels and temperature are combined.
A high of 94 degrees is forecast at Charlotte’s airport on Saturday, according to the NWS.
And the Charlotte area falls under a widespread threat of severe afternoon storms, mainly after 2 p.m., according to a hazardous weather bulletin issued by the NWS office in Greer, S.C., at 5:30 a.m. Saturday.
“A few of these storms could become quite strong and produce large hail, heavy rainfall, and damaging winds,” NWS meteorologists said in the alert.
Upstate South Carolina and much of the N.C. mountains and foothills also are included in the NWS severe weather warning.
Tropical Depression Fred
Fred’s rains could arrive by early Wednesday, after blanketing much of Alabama and Tennessee and northwest Georgia, according to a map of the probable storm path issued by the National Hurricane Center at 5 a.m. Saturday.
Parts of the Florida Keys were under a tropical storm warning on Saturday. At 8 a.m., the center of Fred was 25 miles west of Havana, Cuba, packing 35 mph winds, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Tropical depressions pack winds no greater than 38 mph, according to the National Weather Service.
Fred is expected to track into extreme southwestern N.C. by about 2 a.m. Wednesday, according to the Hurricane Center map.
“Heavy rainfall looks like the main concern for the western Carolinas and northeast Georgia,” meteorologists with the National Weather Service office in Greer, S.C., posted on Twitter at 7 a.m. Saturday.
The amount of rain that could reach western N.C. remained uncertain on Saturday, according to the center.
Deep tropical moisture
But weather patterns virtually guarantee persistent rain for the Charlotte area, which has an 80% chance of precipitation Sunday, Monday and Tuesday and a 70% chance on Wednesday, according to the NWS forecast.
“Deep tropical moisture is poised to run up from the south ahead of the circulation associated with Fred,” NWS meteorologists said in a bulletin Friday.
“Some of the latest guidance shows Fred weakening inland long before it would make it this far north, but at that point it might be academic,” according to the bulletin. “Even if the circulation of Fred was washed out, we would still probably have all the ingredients we need for heavy rain ... from Monday into Wednesday.”
In a weather update on Saturday morning, the NWS said: “Even without Fred, we may have problems. Tuesday might have the best potential for heavier rain as another surge of moisturetakes place ... High precip probably will continue Tuesday night and Wednesday...”
