WeatherNation Headlines: Headlines For September 5 - Lee Dumps Heavy Rain Katia Moves Closer to the U.S.

Sunday, September 4, 2011

Headlines For September 5 - Lee Dumps Heavy Rain Katia Moves Closer to the U.S.

Weather Set Up

Take a look at the image below, it shows the large bubble of High Pressure anchored over the western Great Lakes Region as Lee and Katia slide bottle up the eastern half of the nation. The yellow arrows don't necessarily represent the movement of Lee and Katia, but they do represent the fact that they are pushing the High Pressure back to the wast, not allowing it to move in an easterly direction. Like a ball bouncing off of a wall, high pressure is running into wall of low pressure on the east coast, which will keep the high centered in one spots for several days before drifting east (slightly) by the end of the week.

Slow Moving Swirl of Tropical Moisture

This Labor Day Weekend, folks in the south have been swamped with heavy rain, gusty winds and threats of isolated tornadoes. Take a look at all the rain across the Deep South thanks to Lee.

What's Up With Lee?

Lee continues to fling Gulf of Mexico moisture into the Gulf Coast States and it's really starting to become a problem. Take a look at all the flooding headlines issued across the south:

Radar Estimates of Rainfall

Impressive radar estimates of rainfall are coming in across the south. The image below suggests that nearly 10" to 15" of rain has already fallen on spots.

Official and Unofficial Rainfall Totals

Here are some of the higher totals that I found listed through midday Sunday - find more HERE:

Here's a story on how New Orleans is handling the storm courtesy NOLA.com:

OFFICIAL NWS OBSERVATIONS
AUTOMATED OBSERVATIONS/CO-OP SITES

HOLDON              13.93
N.O. CAROLLTON      12.97
MAUREPAS            11.97
CONVENT 2S          11.55
GALLIANO            11.40
LIVINGSTON          11.24
N.O. AUDUBON        10.79
SLIDELL CITY        10.62
PASCAGOULA          10.60
COVINGTON           10.46

UNOFFICIAL OBSERVATIONS - COCORAHS PUBLIC REPORTS

WAVELAND 1.1NW          14.11 THROUGH 8AM
MARRERO 1.9E            11.61 THROUGH 6AM
MERAUX 0.8WNW           11.18 THROUGH 8AM
PASS CHRISTIAN 8.9NNW   10.02 THROUGH 8AM

Rain Beginning to Spread Northeast

I want to thank Chris Misun for sending in this picture from Meridian Mississippi as rain squalls from Tropical Storm Lee were moving into the area.

Additional Rainfall Expected Through the Week

Tropical Storm Lee is still expected to make a big impact on those east of the Mississippi River Valley through the first full week of September. Waterlogged areas on the Eastern Seaboard are hoping not to see any additional rainfall after Hurricane Irene rolled through, but unfortunately, more heavy rain is expected.

Hurricane Katia Churns Towards the U.S.

We are also watching Hurricane Katia as latest model runs keep Katia very close to the New England States by late week/this weekend. As of Sunday evening, Katia was a Category 2 hurricane with sustained winds at 105mph.