Flood Watch for Thursday as Heavy Rain is Forecast

With two to four inches rain forecast to fall across the region on Thursday (March 10), the National Weather Service has issued a flood watch for much of New Jersey, including Mercer County.

Ironically, the flood watch has been issued for the same day the Mercer County administration and the Federal Emergency Management Agency have chosen to reveal to the public new preliminary flood maps for the county.  

Light rain will start falling Wednesday evening. The precipitation will intensify Thursday morning, with the heaviest rain expected to fall throughout the day into the evening, according to the NWS.

Some areas north of Philadelphia will likely get more than four inches of rain.

“Moderate to major flooding will be widespread with this rainfall pattern. Record flooding is a possibility where the heaviest rain happens to fall,” the NWS advised, noting that flooding conditions will be aggravated by the heavy rain that fell over the past weekend, leaving rivers swollen and soil saturated.

“While the heavy rain is expected to end by Friday morning, the effects from the flooding will likely linger into the weekend or longer for locations adjacent to larger, slower-response rivers,” the NWS said.