April starting wet and windy in Albany and Southwest Georgia
The region is under a flash flood watch until 8 a.m. Saturday
By Jim Hendricks
ALBANY — April’s known for its showers and the month will be getting off to a wet and windy start Friday in the Albany area.
Forecasters said today that the area can expect 3-4 inches of rain late Friday morning and into early Saturday as a cold front passes through the area, combining with tropical moisture from the Gulf.
“It’ll probably move in tomorrow morning and continue into the afternoon and Friday night,” Jeanie McDermott, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service Office in Tallahassee, said.
Rain totals in the Albany area are expected to reach “3 or 4 inches with isolated amounts of 5 or 6 (inches),” she said.
This afternoon, Albany and Southwest Georgia were included in a flash flood watch issued by the Weather Service that was to be in effect until 8 a.m. Saturday. While cloud cover in the area increased as the day progressed and a light rain was falling in the late afternoon, McDermott said Albany had a only slight chance for severe weather overnight Thursday.
“The chances for flooding will increase tomorrow morning,” she said.
Weather Service officials say that the heavy rain is expected to produce some localized areas of flash flooding in places with poor drainage and along small creeks and streams. Forecasters have said part of the concern for flooding is that the ground is already wet in many places and waterways are higher than normal because of the wet Easter weekend.
Residents also need to be aware of the winds that are expected to accompany the storm system. Forecasts late today had winds Friday expected to be 10-15 mph with gusts of up to 25 mph. But forecasters also note that damaging winds were possible Friday.
“You could get higher winds with thunderstorms,” McDermott said.
The Weather Service also has said that the thunderstorms could spawn tornadoes.
Related Articles
Small actions can help save big on utility bills
The high temperatures of July and August can bring scorching utility bills as air conditioners hum to keep houses cool. Albany Utilities Residential Conservation Auditor Willie Jackson offered some tips on making summer cooling bills more manageable.
Bigger budget will mean improvements at Dougherty County’s landfill
“It’s certainly an opportunity where we can grow and make this very beneficial for years to the community. It’s a service that we provide for the community and I want to prolong that resource for the community. It’s not just fill it up and close it.”
Putting on the Ritz: The rise, fall and renewal of Albany’s Harlem District
On July 7, the Albany City Commission unanimously approved final construction drawings for a comprehensive restoration of the Ritz Theatre and Cultural Center, clearing the way for the project to move into competitive bidding after years of planning and preservation efforts. The decision marks the latest chapter in a decades-long effort to preserve one of Southwest Georgia’s most significant African American landmarks.
