Jim Caldwell’s Forecast | Tracking tropical rain potential

LEXINGTON, Ky. (WKYT) - We’ll remain dry for a few more days but those tropical rains from Ian will move in for the weekend.

Expect a mix of sun and clouds to be over your head today and tomorrow. Conditions like this will remain in place until Friday. That’s when the first clouds from Ian will show up in our skies.

Hurricane Ian - Coastal Impact

Ian comes ashore as a Category 4 Hurricane. The minimum winds to be considered a Category 4 are at least 130 MPH for the maximum sustained winds. This storm will bring widespread flooding, wind damage, and tornadoes to Florida. It will cross the state and jump back out over the warm waters of the Atlantic Ocean. While passing over those waters, it will keep tropical storm strength for a little while longer. There’s a good indication that it makes a second landfall along the east coast.

Hurricane Ian - Kentucky Impact

The first clouds will arrive in Kentucky’s skies on Friday. Timing the rain is the next challenge because some models have the moisture getting here on Friday evening and other models have a later arrival time. Either way, it will get very wet for many folks in Kentucky. Just like a winter storm, this will have a sharp cutoff from east to west. Where it doesn’t rain will likely see temperatures in the 70s and under the rain could be as low as the 50s. There’s a heavy rain threat out for parts of Kentucky. I think the best shot of that happens in Eastern Kentucky.

Guidance from the models will change in the coming days. I’ll stay on top of it all.

Take care of each other!

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