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Rain will taper off — but not today (with soggy video)

 
Published Sept. 25, 2013

Dry weather is on the horizon this week, but don't expect a break today.

The heavy rain and thunderstorms that flooded streets and slowed traffic across the Tampa Bay area starting Monday were expected to taper off late Wednesday night. By Thursday, the chance of rain was expected to drop to 40 percent as showers became scattered, Bay News 9 meteorologist Juli Marquez said.

A stalled front has lingered over north Florida for days, combining with a section of deep moisture over the bay area to create soggy conditions. That front should begin to move toward the area Thursday. That will mean a chance of thunderstorms, Marquez said, but the movement will also make room for a drier weekend with less humidity.

"We're going to have sunshine, and it will be a little cooler, and we won't have to deal with rain like we've had the past few days," Marquez said.

But Wednesday, it seems, will stay wet. Another several inches of rain were expected to pound the already saturated ground, bringing the possibility of more street flooding and raising water levels.

At 5 a.m., Bay News 9 listed 24-hour rain totals for many area locations. Most were between 1 and 4 inches, but Holiday topped out at more than 5 inches. Marquez said another half inch to inch of rain could be added to those totals at 9 a.m.

Flood watch and rip current warnings were not set to expire until 8 p.m. Wednesday.