Hurricane Ian will bring rain and wind to Knoxville and East Tennessee
Hurricane Ian slammed into Florida's southwestern coast Wednesday as a Category 4 storm and is expected to make a second landfall near Charleston, South Carolina, on Friday as a Category 1.
Its remnants are expected to hit East Tennessee over the weekend.
East Tennessee should see less rainfall than previously expected due to a slight shift eastward in the track, according to the National Weather Service Morristown office.
"The further west and southwest you go, the least amount of rain," NWS Morristown meteorologist Tom Doyle told Knox News. "The highest amounts are going to be in the northeast mountains."
Models show Knoxville can expect a quarter of an inch to a half inch of rainfall. The Gatlinburg area may get up to 1.5 inches, while the far northeast regions of the state could see totals up to 3 inches over the weekend.
Live updates:'Floridians up and down Gulf Coast' warned as Hurricane Ian strengthens, could reach Category 4
East Tennessee is expected to remain west of the storm's center and will receive less rain and wind than western parts of North Carolina and South Carolina.
Remnants of Ian will track north and weaken as it approaches the region tonight. Forecast rainfall totals have lowered due to a slight eastward shift in the track. Wind gusts will be around 20-25 mph in the TN Valley with 30-45 mph gusts in the mountains. https://t.co/QiUOrRSYbF pic.twitter.com/GkoK82WWec
— NWS Morristown (@NWSMorristown) September 30, 2022
The highest elevations in the northeast have a greater risk of fallen limbs due gusty winds around 30-45 mph. Trees could fall as the ground becomes saturated.
The mountains should protect areas like Knoxville from higher winds, which may experience 25 mph gusts. But the clouds and rain will cause temperatures to drop to the lower 60s and 50s.
“It's not gonna be a fun weekend,” NWS meteorologist Andrew Moulton previously told Knox News. “(The) weekend’s gonna be gross, and I think it's gonna turn nice again once we get back into the next workweek.”
Hurricane Ian’s exact track and arrival time are still uncertain. Get up-to-date storm information from NWS Morristown (weather.gov/mrx) and the National Hurricane Center (nhc.noaa.gov).
Hurricane Ian tracker
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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Expect rain from the remnants of Hurricane Ian to hit this weekend
