Storms set off tornado and flood watches and warnings in the Philly region. Expect more rain this weekend
The strongest storms are expected around 5 p.m. in the immediate Philly area, coinciding with the evening rush.
Severe storms set off tornado and flood warnings on Thursday in the Philly region, and in some places turned the phrase “rush hour” into an oxymoron.
Intense thunderstorms took down trees and wires in parts of Chester County, and fallen trees blocked portions of heavily traveled Route 322 in Honey Brook, the weather service reported.
Streams came out of their banks, and flash flooded occurred in West Norriton and Lower Providence Townships, in Montgomery County, making “many streets” impassable.
A tornado warning had been issued for portions of Chester and Delaware Counties, but it was not known if a twister was sighted.
About 21,000 Peco customers were without power as of 8 p.m.
All of Philadelphia; areas to the west of the city, including the Main Line; northern Delaware; and in New Jersey along the Delaware River were under a flash-flood warning until 8:45 p.m.
Lines of storms gathered to the west and south of the region during the day with the approach of an eastward-moving front interacting with a volatile, energized atmosphere.
“It’s a pretty juicy air mass,” said Matt Benz, senior meteorologist for AccuWeather Inc. And more juice might be squeezed out of it over the next few days, especially Saturday.
It turns out that the front that set off the storms may return in a repurposed form during the weekend.
Disruptive storms came at a bad time
The storms arrived between 5 and 5:30 p.m. in the immediate Philly area, right when a lot of people likely would have been heading home.
The storms moved quickly, but the downpours were strong enough to set off flash-flood warnings.
The fact that the sun interrupted the afternoon gloom on Thursday didn’t help matters, meteorologists said. On a day when the air was so full of moisture and energy, that was about the last thing they wanted to see.
“It’s ironic, isn’t it,” said Joe Wegman meteorologist with the government’s Weather Prediction Center, in College Park, Md.
The solar heating likely provided a power jolt to an already charged atmosphere.
The outlook for the weekend
If you have outdoor plans Saturday, this is probably something you don’t want to read.
After the front clears the region, Friday should be a decent day, Wegman said.
But it’s likely to migrate back, this time as a warm front, said Wegman. Showers are possible Friday night, and might be tapping into a generous moisture supply on Saturday.
Said Benz, “I wouldn’t throw out the word washout, but it could be pretty wet on Saturday.” Steady rain is possible, as are more downpours Saturday afternoon into the night.
As for Sunday, you guessed it — another chance of showers.
