By Stephen Cheslik
EAGLE TIMES
MANAGING EDITOR
The weekend’s heavy rains have tapered off for now, but don’t expect the relatively dry weather to stick.
While it should be fairly dry today, there is a chance of showers Tuesday, said National Weather Service Meteorologist Stephen Baron in Gray, Maine. The dominant weather pattern that has brought torrential rains to Vermont and New Hampshire over the past week is expected to continue through the end of the month.
A persistently southerly weather flow is creating a particularly moist region off the Atlantic Ocean, Baron said.
On Sunday morning, warnings went out as a weather balloon sounding recorded the highest precipitable water measure forecasters at the Gray office had seen — 2.34 inches.
“That means the air above us is holding a record amount of water vapor. So, whenever it rains, it will be torrential,” meteorologist Andy Pohl told Granite State News Cooperative member Manchester Link.
Some locations in New Hampshire were expected to pick up 3-4 inches of rain in a short period.
As the rain was tapering off Sunday afternoon, flooding was reported in Western Vermont and Southern New Hampshire.
In Vermont, Otter Creek overflowed near Dewey Road south of Middlebury; and in New Hampshire, flooding occurred in Hillsborough County, Weather Service meteorologists told the Eagle Times.
While a tornado watch had been issued for New Hampshire on Sunday, the National Weather Service had no reports of twisters touching down as the watch expired, Baron said.
Storms are expected to be more localized going forward but still potentially dangerous as the ground is already saturated and streams are running high.
As your daily newspaper, we are committed to providing you with important local news coverage for Sullivan County and the surrounding areas.