On the first day of winter Friday, expect buckets of rain.
A flash-flood watch has been issued for Montgomery County, and most of the Washington region, from 7 p.m. Thursday until sunset on Friday.
Forecasts are calling for as much as 2 inches of rain over the next two days as a storm system moves up the seaboard from the Southeast, bringing gusty winds and the prospect of toppled trees and power lines. On the Maryland coastline, up to 4 inches of rain could fall, according to forecast models updated Thursday morning.
Today’s heavy rain is expected to disrupt travel on one of the busiest getaway days of the season Thursday and into the weekend as shoppers make last-minute runs to the stores. It could be worse: If the precipitation amounts expected fell as snow, more than 3 feet could have piled up.
AAA estimates one-in-three Americans will be on the road during the holidays and the association cites a prediction by the traffic analytics firm INRIX that gridlock could make some drives four times longer than normal.
A survey released Wednesday by the National Retail Federation said an estimated 134 million people nationwide plan to shop on the last Saturday before Christmas.
“They are making sure to research everything from shipping deadlines to the best deals,” said Phil Rist, executive vice president of the research firm Prosper, in a statement released by the retailers’ trade group. “Some are already looking to the days after Christmas to find treasures in the clearance bins.”
