First Alert Weather Day: Ian set to bring heavy rain, strong wind on Saturday

First Alert Weather Day: Ian set to bring heavy rain, strong wind on Saturday

We’ll see clear skies and cool temperatures again tonight.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (WBTV) – A First Alert Weather Day has been issued for Saturday for the Charlotte area due to local impacts from Hurricane Ian.

The storm is forecast to bring in heavy rains and strong wind gusts throughout the day. Flooding remains a concern along with downed trees and power lines from strong winds.

For Tuesday, there’s plenty of sunshine back in the forecast along with pleasant afternoon readings in the middle 70s.

• Today: Lots of sunshine and pleasantly warm
• Late Week: More clouds and cool temperatures
• Weekend: First Alert for Hurricane Ian impacts

We’ll see clear skies and cool temperatures again tonight. Most neighborhoods will drop back into the chilly 40s.

High pressure nosing in from the north cools us even further midweek, with a few more clouds Wednesday followed by mostly cloudy skies Thursday and highs both days only about 70 degrees.

A First Alert kicks in starting on Friday and lingers through Sunday. There is still a lot of uncertainty in exact details of the extended forecast, as the weather we get here in the WBTV viewing area will very much depend on the eventual track of Hurricane Ian and how fast it travels north from Florida.

At this point, it looks as if the storm will lift north into Georgia on Friday, and so rain will eventually overspread our area. With highs in the 60s, Friday is shaping up to be not only wet but breezy and very cool.

The remnants of Ian are forecast to move up into the Carolinas late Friday night and Saturday, and that appears to be the timeframe when the heaviest rain can be expected. Still, though, showers and thunderstorms will likely linger into Sunday too with highs both days of the weekend in the lower 70s.

The main impacts locally appear to be flash flooding from three, to perhaps as much as six inches of rain and gusty winds of 30+ mph (higher in the mountains). The severe weather threat looks low at this time, but a tornado risk could develop with a shift in the expected track, so stay tuned for further forecast updates.

Tropical Update: Hurricane Ian is forecast to intensify over the next 24 hours as it approaches the west coast of Florida. Ian will be a major storm Wednesday and Thursday, making a landfall near Tampa Bay (or a little bit south) late Wednesday night. Torrential rain, up to 20 inches, flash flooding, intense wind gusts and tornadoes are all part of the equation there.

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Stay tuned to WBTV for the very latest forecast updates!

Chief Meteorologist Al Conklin

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