Flash flood watch in effect for Charlotte, extended for mountains

A flash flood watch is in effect through Friday morning for Charlotte and through Friday night for the foothills and mountains, but heavy rain could continue in spots through Sunday afternoon.

A low-pressure system stretching from the Midwest to the Gulf Coast will ship moisture across the western Carolinas and northeast Georgia through Friday, the National Weather Service said. The threat of flash flooding rises as the ground becomes saturated and stream levels increase, especially when downpours repeatedly hit the same areas.

Charlotte is expected to get a total of about 1.2 inches of rain from Thursday morning until Friday night. The mountains will see up to 2.4 inches.

The rain will add to the nearly 6 inches of rain that fell on Charlotte in July, 2.3 inches more than normal for the month.

Late Thursday, emergency crews were rescuing stranded campers at Real McCoy Family Campground on Log Drive in Statesville, WSOC-TV reported. The road had “washed out,” the station reported.

On Thursday, up to two feet of standing water was reported on Interstate 77 between Mooresville exits 33 and 31 and on the exit/entrance ramps, Observer news partner WBTV reported.

At least four inches of rain flooded the lobby, operating rooms and other areas of the Wilson L. Smith Center at Novant Health Rowan Medical Center in Salisbury, hospital President Dari Caldwell told WBTV.

The hospital stayed open, but all elective surgeries were postponed, the station reported.

The weekend is likelier to be dry, with a 30 percent chance of rain in Charlotte on both Saturday and Sunday.

Observer news partner WBTV reported that heavy rainfall Wednesday night delayed inbound flights to Charlotte’s airport, caused delays on the Lynx Blue line and left standing water on Interstate 77. Duke Energy reported 106 power outages in Mecklenburg County on Thursday morning and 577 outages in Rowan County.

This story was originally published August 2, 2018 at 12:00 AM.