South Louisiana Set for More Soaking Rains
I was driving down one of the main drags in Lafayette the other day and I noticed an electronic billboard that had been commissioned by Lafayette Utilities Systems. The billboard reminded all who were looking at it that the watering restrictions were in place for the city of Lafayette. The irony of this was that I was looking through a very wet windshield in the middle of a tropical downpour.
I get it, that was just one of those ironic moments where comedy writes itself but the fact is, we are not really hurting for water, at least right now, in the city of Lafayette. I would hazard to guess that over the next day or so we might have too much water to contend with. That's just a fancy way of saying don't expect the rain to stop anytime soon.
Already in the very early morning hours of Tuesday, we have seen quite a bit of rainfall over much of the I-10 and US 190 corridors. It does look as if those rain chances will stay high throughout the daylight hours and especially this afternoon.
Chief Meteorologist Rob Perillo at KATC published in his weather blog on the TV station website this projected rainfall model for the area. That model the HRRR, High-Resolution Rapid Refresh model, shows the disparity of rainfall totals scattered about the southern third of the state.
In fact, you can see that the HRRR model shows some areas getting several inches of rain while locales that are just a few miles away will receive quite a bit less or quite a bit more. Such is the nature of the rainfall pattern we will experience between now and Wednesday night when it appears that we will finally get a break.
The majority of the rainfall is being kicked off by an upper-level low-pressure system that is slipping slowly southward through Arkansas and eastern Oklahoma this morning. That system will eventually slide a little further to the west and when it does, our rain threat should decrease.
So here's what we can expect for today, Tuesday.
However, there is a yin to every yang. When the rain and clouds retreat the temperatures start to climb. Granted, we have not gotten that hot in south Louisiana this summer. We have certainly had some high heat index days but so far we have yet to be included in any excessive heat warnings or advisories but we still have a lot of summertime left, including August to get through.
Since you're probably going to stay inside these next few days, you might as well double-check and make sure that your home has all the proper items needed to be a well-stocked Louisiana home.
Ten Things You'll Find in a Typical Louisiana Home