Pinpoint Weather: Rain chances increase throughout Friday, chilly weekend ahead

Posted: Dec 4, 2020 / 04:21 AM EST / Updated: Dec 4, 2020 / 10:51 AM EST

A storm system to our south will throw moisture toward Southwest and Central Virginia Friday.

Morning temperatures for Friday will start off in the 30s before making their way into the 50s during the afternoon. We won’t see as much sunshine today, mainly mostly cloudy to overcast skies. While a few spotty brief rain showers may produce some rain during the morning hours, our best chance for rain will be later in the day. Off and on showers can be expected late in the afternoon with widespread rain moving in during the evening and overnight hours.

Periods of heavy rainfall may lead to localized flooding in low-lying spots and areas will poor drainage. Since the storm system is moving faster than in previous forecasts, rainfall totals won’t be as high. 1 – 2″ of rain is still possible east of the Blue Ridge with New River Valley and Alleghany Highlands seeing between 0.5 – 1.5″ of rain.

Much of the rain will be out of the region by sunrise Saturday. Snow showers will have the chance to develop along the west-facing slopes of Pocahontas and Greenbrier counties in West Virginia during the morning. Otherwise, winds will pick up throughout the day with gusts between 30 – 40 mph possible. Cloud cover will decrease overhead, but it will be noticeably chillier with high temperatures in the mid 40s and into the low 50s. A few spots may struggle to warm up past the 40-degree mark in the Alleghany Highlands and New River Valley.

Sunday will be fairly quiet and winds won’t be as gusty. Skies will be mostly sunny and highs will be in the 40s and low 50s. Clouds will increase as we head into Monday as a couple of disturbances move to our north and south. This could bring the chance for a light mix of rain and snow. At this time, precipitation chances are low, but this could change. High temperatures for Monday will be in the 40s in the Roanoke Valley, Southside, and Central Virginia. The New River Valley and Alleghany Highlands can expect highs in the 30s.