ASHEVILLE, N.C. (828newsNOW) — If it feels like the weather can’t quite make up its mind across Western North Carolina this week, you’re not wrong.
Storms began firing up shortly after noon Wednesday, with a strong thunderstorm pushing through the Asheville area by mid-afternoon. That system prompted an alert from the National Weather Service, which warned that scattered showers and thunderstorms would continue mainly across the mountains into the evening.
“Stay weather aware and go indoors when thunder roars,” forecasters reminded earlier in the day.
The unsettled pattern is coming during what has already been a dry stretch. Since Jan. 1, Asheville is running about 8.32 inches below normal for precipitation.
But relief — if you can call it that — is on the way in the form of a much wetter and cooler stretch heading into the holiday weekend.
Forecasters say a cold front will move into the region Thursday before stalling out across the mountains through the weekend and into early next week. That setup will keep clouds, showers and thunderstorms in the forecast for several days.
Thursday will bring another round of scattered storms, with more widespread rain expected by the afternoon as the front settles in. Highs will stay warm, near 80, but begin to ease back slightly.
By Friday, the bigger change arrives. A strong high-pressure system building in from the Great Lakes will help drive in a cooler “wedge” of air, dropping temperatures noticeably across the region. Highs could struggle to reach 70 in some spots, especially north of the Interstate 40 corridor, with cloudy, damp conditions lingering through the day.
That cooler air mass is expected to stick around into Saturday before gradually weakening by late weekend. Even so, forecasters say rain chances won’t go away.
Widespread showers and embedded thunderstorms are likely off and on through the weekend and into Memorial Day, with highs generally holding in the 70s to low 80s once the wedge begins to break down.
The bottom line: it’s a stretch where umbrellas will likely be just as important as sunglasses — and neither may get a full break anytime soon.