Flood Warning for 10 States Amid Winter Weather Alerts

Flood warnings have been issued across 10 states as heavy rain continues to lash the U.S.

The National Weather Service (NWS) has warned of flooding across the breadth of the country, as far west as California and all the way to Florida in the southeast. Heavy rainfall will likely cause flooding in communities along rivers, the forecaster has said.

The frigid temperatures that have been widespread over the past week will finally thaw in some areas on Tuesday, thanks to low-pressure systems. NWS weather maps show rain traveling northward from the Gulf of Mexico over southern and East Coast states, while a separate front from the Pacific Ocean travels over western areas.

As of Tuesday morning, the NWS has issued warnings for Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, and Washington. Newsweek contacted the NWS for comment via email on Tuesday.

Winter weather alerts, including forecasts of freezing rain and snow, are active in 17 states. NWS maps show that snow is forecasted for New England states, with pockets of freezing rain expected across Midwestern areas, including Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa and Michigan.

Flood warnings have been issued around numerous rivers in Texas. As much as 7 inches of rain is expected to fall around the Sulphur River, affecting the Franklin, Titus, Morris and Red River counties. The lowest amount of rainfall predicted across Texas is 2 inches, according to the latest warnings.

The deluge traveling north has also prompted warnings in other southern states, including Louisiana, Georgia, Florida, Arkansas and North and South Carolina. Several rounds of heavy rain are expected to fall on Wednesday night in Louisiana and Arkansas, with State Highways 7 and 51 both expected to flood in the latter.

In North Carolina, minor flooding is forecast in several areas, with some warnings in place until Thursday afternoon. In South Carolina, warnings are in place until late on Wednesday evening, with areas around the Great Pee Dee River being affected by flood waters for as long as two weeks, the NWS says.

In Georgia, the Altamaha and Satilla rivers are both expected to flood in certain areas, with warnings lasting until Wednesday and Thursday evenings.

In the west, the Skokomish River through Mason County is expected to flood imminently in Washington, which is expected to be widespread over pasture lands and some local roads.

In the Midwest, four counties in Illinois are under an open-ended flood warning issued on Monday. The Illinois River near Beardstown is expected to be high in the next few days, coming to a crest by Monday, January 29.

The warnings come after San Diego was hit with extreme flash floods on Monday, following record-breaking rainfall caused by an atmospheric river in the region. The NWS has said “the San Diego River is slowly subsiding and expected to fall below flood stage around 6 a.m. today,” but a warning is in place for the river and Fashion Valley until 6 a.m. local time.

The NWS has advised anyone in areas with potential for flooding to exercise caution and for motorists to turn around if they encounter flood waters, saying “most flood deaths occur in vehicles.” Residents in affected areas are warned to be “especially cautious at night when it is harder to recognize the dangers of flooding.”