Weather Service Predicts ‘Significant’ Rain Event for South Louisiana This Week

(KMDL-FM) Forecasters with the National Weather Service Forecast Office in Lake Charles are getting out in front of this forecast by telling you today that the next several days will include copious amounts of rainfall.

Heavy Rains Forecast For I-10 Corridor This Week

Rainfall accumulations of four to six inches could be expected in cities such as Lake Charles, Lafayette, New Iberia, St Martinville, Opelousas, and Crowley before this current rain event is over.

The four to six inch rainfall projections are what the National Weather Service is calling the "reasonably highest rainfall amounts" predicted for the region. We should note that while this forecast is on the upper edge of the predicted rainfall amount, some locations could see even more than six inches of rain between now and Saturday morning.

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The potential for severe storms, according to the Storm Prediction Center, will be concentrated in the northwestern corner of Louisiana today. Cities such as Shreveport, Bossier City, Ruston, Natchitoches, and Winnfield are in the slight risk zone for severe storms this afternoon.

The severe weather threat does extend southward across the northern two-thirds of Louisiana. As of this morning, the "dividing line" between severe and not severe appears to be U.S. 190. Any area north of that highway might be at a slightly higher risk for stronger storms than communities along and south of I-10 might be.

What is the Reason for All The Rain In Louisiana This Week?

The reason for the unsettled nature of the forecast is the southern jet stream. This high-velocity current of air in the upper atmosphere will pull a series of upper-level disturbances across Louisiana from later this afternoon through early Saturday morning. Because of abundant moisture in the atmosphere, showers and storms created by these disturbances could trigger dramatic downpours, almost without warning.

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Unfortunately, the weather will not be conducive to events such as graduation and the Cajun Heartland State Fair. Graduation for many high schools is this week, and while most of those ceremonies are indoors, the threat of flooding rains could make getting to and from graduation trickier than seventh-grade math.

The Cajun Heartland State Fair is scheduled to open its run at the Cajundome in Lafayette on Friday. Fair attendees will want to check the forecast before heading out and make sure to keep a close eye on the forecast for Saturday as well.