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Washington, D.C., Baltimore, Philadelphia and New York City could see excessive amounts of rain through Friday, forecasters warned.
Forecast risk of excessive rain for Thursday
July 31, 2025Updated 2:23 p.m. ET
Widespread storms are expected to bring periods of intense rainfall to parts of the northern Mid-Atlantic and the Northeast on Thursday, and forecasters said that up to eight inches of rain could fall in some areas and raise the risk of a “potentially significant flash flooding event.”
Here are the key things to know:
Washington and Baltimore could see some of the most intense rain. New York City issued a travel advisory.
A severe thunderstorm watch, which means conditions are favorable for the type of storms that can deliver strong winds and hail, was issued early Thursday afternoon until 8 p.m. for an area that includes Washington, Baltimore, Philadelphia and New York City.
Some areas in southeastern Pennsylvania and Northern New Jersey were already under flash flood warnings, which means flash flooding is imminent or already occurring.
The weather conditions leading to the bouts of heavy rain involve a cold front moving across the region. Richard Bann, a meteorologist at the Weather Prediction Center, an arm of the National Weather Service, said that the front was interacting with air that was unusually warm, humid and unstable this time of year.
“That’s going to allow the storms to become stronger,” he said. “With some very intense rainfall rates, upward of two inches per hour.”
By early afternoon, flight disruptions were rising at airports around the New York metropolitan area and along the East Coast, with hundreds of weather-related delays and cancellations stacking up.
Departures to Washington Dulles International Airport, Baltimore-Washington International Airport, Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, La Guardia International Airport, Newark Liberty International Airport, Teterboro Airport and Philadelphia International Airport were grounded. This has resulted in flight delays two hours long and counting at some airports.
The Weather Prediction Center issued a Level 3 out of 4 risk for excessive rainfall for an area that includes Washington, Baltimore, Philadelphia and New York City through Friday. A wider area, from central Virginia to southern Massachusetts, including Richmond and Long Island, was under slightly lower risk. Flood watches were also issued across much of the region.
