North Carolina can seek federal funding to help its overloaded response efforts to Tropical Storm Chantal, which killed at least six people and left damage from flooding in its wake, as Gov. Josh Stein announced a state of emergency Thursday.

The National Hurricane Center said Thursday, July 17 a broad area of low pressure is expected to bring heavy rainfall to portions of the Gulf Coast.

The good news is a marked decrease in intensity of the thunderstorms in the past two hours. As of 7:30 p.m. there is only one isolated severe thunderstorm warning in effect over the entire Great Lakes region. The National Weather Service has watched this decline and cancelled the severe thunderstorm watch in effect for this evening.

Until Tuesday, WYMT will be in a First Alert Weather Day to monitor the risk of localized flooding, which could result from repeated isolated showers and storms bringing heavy rain. Have a great Thursday! Friday: Chance of Storms. Saturday: Chance of Storms. Sunday: Chance of Storms. Monday: Chance of Storms. Tuesday: Chance of Storms.

The storm will bring heavy rainfall to the region, and a flood watch was in effect for southeastern Louisiana through Friday night.

While Thursday could see clear weather, a risk of thunderstorms could also bring with it a chance for damaging winds and tornadoes to develop in parts of Massachusetts.

Parts of Somerset and Middlesex experienced severe flooding during Monday’s storms, necessitating dozens of water rescues in several towns. High temperatures on Wednesday will climb into the upper 80s to low 90s with a heat index in the low to mid 90s.

Rounds of thunderstorms have been dumping torrential rains across the region over the past few days and, unfortunately, the worst is yet to come. Significant flash flooding issues may develop at times over the next several days. There’s also the chance for some strong and severe storms.

Clouds build Friday afternoon with perhaps a bigger surge of moisture. This time the showers and storms will move from southwest to northeast, beginning in east Alabama around late morning or midday and continuing through the afternoon. Rain coverage is forecast to be closer to 50%. Highs back into the 90s for pretty much everyone.

As mentioned yesterday, we’re watching two rounds of showers and storms.