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Heavy rain keeps greater Chattanooga farmers out of fields Rain puts a damper on Lookouts opening homestand
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Today: Breezy, showers. High 73, low 47 Tuesday: Few clouds, 72/51 Wednesday: Some clouds, 73/54 Thursday: Possible shower, 73/52 Friday: Few clouds, 74/53 Saturday: Rain likely, 72/52 Sunday: Few showers, 69/48 Source: Paul Barys, WRCB-Channel 3
Tornado warnings in North Georgia, a mud slide in Polk County and flooded streets throughout the area will give way to calmer weather this week, forecasters say.
Just on Sunday, storms dropped 1.53 inches of rain in Chattanooga, said National Weather Service meteorologist Sam Roberts in the Morristown, Tenn., office.
More than 7.8 inches of rain have fallen so far in April, compared to a normal total of 5.2 inches, weather service records say.
"It's a pretty wet April," said Andrew Pritchett, another Morristown meteorologist.
And though more showers and thunderstorms may come today, "Tuesday, it will definitely be dry," Roberts said. Coming off a cold front and high winds from Monday, Tuesday's high is expected to hit 69 degrees, about 4 degrees below normal, said Roberts.
The anticipated sunshine comes after days of heavy rain and thunderstorms that brought high winds to Southeast Tennessee and North Georgia, including a tornado warning in southern Whitfield County and northwestern Gordon County, Ga.
A thunderstorm capable of producing tornadoes was located 11 miles southwest of Calhoun, according to the National Weather Service. Dalton, Resaca, Armuchee and Plainville were all under the warning, but no touchdown was reported.
In Polk County, Tenn., a land slide triggered by rain blocked the westbound lane of U.S. Highway 64 on Sunday.
Jennifer Flynn, spokeswoman for the Tennessee Department of Transportation, said crews would continue working today to clear the slide, which happened between Maddens Branch and state Highway 30. She said geotechnical engineers were coming in from Nashville to assess the area and decide when to reopen both lanes.
Early in the day, streets, roads and low-lying areas throughout the region filled with rushing water, but most drained away quickly without causing injuries or serious damage, area police dispatchers said.
In Hamilton County a sheriff's deputy called public works to clear debris-filled ditches in the Camp Columbus area near Lake Chickamauga in Hixson.
In Catoosa County, signs warned motorists of high water on East Lake View Drive, West State Line Road and Page Road, and Walker County Emergency Services said Logan Avenue in Rossville was under water. The weather service warned of possible overnight flooding in Trenton, Rising Fawn and New England in Dade County, Ga.
So much rain fell on Sunday in northeast Tennessee that the NASCAR Sprint Cup race in Bristol delayed its 1:13 p.m. start time until about 2:30 p.m. according to news reports.
In southeast Alabama, The Associated Press reported that powerful storms overturned train cars, downed trees and flooded roads in communities across the state.
The National Weather Service issued a tornado warning for part of Henry County in southeast Alabama Sunday morning. After that storm rolled through, a state trooper reported several train cars knocked from their tracks and overturned outside Abbeville.
The area where the train cars overturned appears to the site of the most damage in that area, Henry County Emergency Manager Ronnie Dollar said.
"I can't at this point say for sure we've had a tornado, but it certainly looks like we have," Dollar told The Associated Press early Sunday afternoon.
Contact staff writer Yolanda Putman at yputman@timesfreepress.com or 757-6431.
