Christmas Day forecast: Light rain, low 70s, flash flood watch continues

Christmas Day in the Charlotte region will see some showers as well flash flood watches.

In fact, a flash flood watch will continue across Charlotte and areas west of the city until 7 p.m. Friday, according to the National Weather Service.

Though only showers are predicted, meteorologist Lauren Visin with the weather service in Greer, S.C., said the ground is so wet that small amounts of rain could result in flooding, especially near creeks.

The temperature is expected to reach 73 degrees on Christmas Day, so it probably won’t break the 1955 record of 77. It’s still 20 to 25 degrees above the average high temperature this time of year.

Thursday’s mid-70s temperature broke a record of 71, set on Christmas Eve 1931.

The chance of rain will drop to near zero over the weekend, and temperatures will stay in the low 70s. Rain might return Monday and Tuesday, and the temperature is expected to fall to the upper 60s.

The weather does not appear to be having a major impact on travel at Charlotte Douglas International Airport during the busy holiday season. Few delays or cancellations were reported. (Track your flight at http://bit.ly/cltflightinfo.)

The N.C. mountains and foothills saw heavy rain Thursday morning. Wednesday night, a storm system forecasters called “particularly dangerous” killed at least seven people as it swept across the country, and officials were searching for missing residents into the night.

The spring-like storms killed three in Mississippi, two in Tennessee and one in Arkansas before the worst passed Wednesday night. Victims included a 7-year-old boy in Holly Springs, Miss., who died when the storm picked up and tossed the car he was riding in, officials said.

The Associated Press contributed.

This story was originally published December 24, 2015 at 6:55 AM with the headline "Christmas Day forecast: Light rain, low 70s, flash flood watch continues."