Rain is expected to continue through the week, but it likely will not cause the damage it did last week.
"There's an almost constant chance of showers and thunderstorms," said meteorologist Mike Dangelo, of the National Weather Service in State College. "There's no period that would have more than 24 hours without a chance of showers or thunderstorms."
That could be bad news for those hardest hit by thunderstorms Thursday and Saturday last week.
Article Photos
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette
A woman wades across a flooded parking lot during a rain delay in the DOC Softball Tournament at Elm Park on Saturday. Behind her, a couple hitch up a trailer to move it to higher ground.
Rainfall amounts could be 3 or 4 inches this week.
"That's a lot of rain for one hour," Dangelo said. "It's not a lot for seven days. ... I think (it is) less likely that there will be flooding."
On Thursday, the Williamsport Regional Airport received 0.83 inches of rain. On Saturday, it received 0.76 inches of rain.
"There were spots that got much more rainfall," he said. "Williamsport itself got more rainfall."
A storm was moving through the north Thursday, with a thunderstorm in front of it.
On Saturday, storms moved slower, which was the cause for so much rainfall.
"When it wasn't moving much, it produced copious amounts of rain," he said.
Storms are most likely to happen in the afternoons and evenings this week, but overnight and morning showers are possible, too. Some of the showers could turn into thunderstorms.
"There will be thunderstorms," Dangelo said. "It's too hot. It's July. We'll have thunderstorms. Who gets hit and who gets missed is a very difficult thing to project right now."
As of Sunday evening, Dangelo said the forecast indicated small amounts of rain, but if that changes, the National Weather Service will put out a flash-flood watch to indicate flooding is possible.
"Just a week ago, people were complaining it's so dry," Dangelo said. "It's feast or famine. It all averages out at some point in summer. We might have a tropical storm move up and drop lots and lots of rainfall."
He mentioned that this year is the 40th anniversary of Hurricane Agnes, which caused flooding throughout the county in 1972.
"It can be really bad or it can be really dry as well," Dangelo said. "You want somewhere in between."
So far this year, 19.63 inches of rain fell. By this point in the year, 23 inches is average.
"We're about three under for the year," he said. "It's not much. It's not a significant difference."
This time last year, 36 inches had fallen, which was "well above normal."
There have been no drought conditions in the area, but there was a drought watch issued in the western counties, he said.
While a lot of rain may be predicted, temperatures look stable.
"It's somewhere between 78 and 85 for highs (all week)," Dangelo said. "It's very normal for this time of year."
