Heavy rains early Wednesday expected to cause crummy commutes

At Warner Park, a large dumpster truck plows through deep water behind the left field fence at Frost Stadium before noon on Tuesday. Rain continues today with possible flash flooding, according to weather prediction services. At Warner Park, a large dumpster truck plows through deep water behind the left field fence at Frost Stadium before noon on Tuesday. Rain continues today with possible flash flooding, according to weather prediction services.

By Ben Benton September 25, 2018 5 min read

Rainfall in Chattanooga Monday set a new record, and some parts of North Georgia saw more than 5 inches as a rainy weather system hovered over the region. Rain was expected to soak the area again this morning.

Urban intersections were turned into ponds and low-lying rural areas became lakes as torrential downpours fell across the region over the past two days.

Lingering heavy rain at the Chattanooga airport between midnight Sunday and midnight Monday set a new record at 3.41 inches for the date, WRCB-TV Channel 3 meteorologist David Karnes said Tuesday. Heavy rain that fell after midnight early Tuesday only added to that amount.

Caution tape lies across a puddle in the parking lot across from Ridgedale Baptist Church along Hickory Valley Road Tuesday, September 25, 2018 in East Brainerd, Tennessee. Rain is expected to loom in the Chattanooga area until Friday.

FIVE-DAY FORECAST

WednesdayThunderstorms, 87 percent chance of precipitationHigh: 67 | Low: 65ThursdayThunderstorms, 84 percent chance of precipitationHigh: 76 | Low: 67FridayScattered thunderstorms, 80 percent chance of precipitationHigh: 80 | Low: 65SaturdayScattered thunderstorms, 77 percent chance of precipitationHigh: 81 | Low: 65SundayShowers late, 75 percent chance of precipitationHigh: 82 | Low: 66Sources: WRCB-TV Channel 3, the National Weather Service

“It was pretty much record-shattering rainfall,” Karnes said. “The old record was 1.7 inches back in 1991.”