Much needed rain from Francine’s remnants for parts of the area Friday

It was just what the doctored ordered across the Bluegrass and parts of South Central Kentucky on Friday with a slow moving band of tropical moisture drifting through those areas thanks to the remnants of Francine sitting just to our southwest. A number of locations saw a soaking, steady rain for several hours and as a result picked up a 1″-2″ rain as a result. Of course a number of other locations came up empty with no measurable rainfall so the expected gradient from west to east came into play as expected. Temperatures were impacted significantly depending on location thanks to the clouds and rain with afternoon highs struggling to get into the low to mid-70s where it rained while those spots that were dry reached the low 80s. We did see some pretty rainbow shots with some sunshine around Lexington as the rain showers moved in Friday morning.

The remnant low of Francine will remain to our west and should actually be pushed to the south and southeast deeper in the weekend as the big upper level ridge of high pressure to our north strengthens. Throw in an east wind at the surface (which creates down sloping winds coming out of the mountains to our east and has a drying affect) and our forecast is looing much drier the next few days. There is still the potential of an isolated to stray storm popping up during the afternoon but most locations will be dry. With more sunshine around, highs will be pushed into the mid to upper 80s so expect a warm one.

If you are headed to Kroger Field for Kentucky and Georgia on Saturday evening (which you can see right here on ABC 36 at 7:30pm) I think the weather should be pretty decent with some sunshine and warm temperatures for tailgating and an overall pleasant evening for the game. Just take the raingear to be on the safe side but overall things are looking better for a dry forecast on Saturday.

The remainder of the weekend looks pretty quiet as the east wind stays in place and the upper level ridge continues to push what is left of the remnant low well to our south. This should keep any rain chances at a minimum for Sunday and Monday as afternoon highs stay at or above average into the mid-80s. The air should be a bit drier with the “muggy-cast” showing humidity levels staying in the comfortable zone in the coming days.

Looking ahead to next week, the data is still showing the potential of the coastal low over the Carolinas sliding back to the west while trying to push some moisture into Eastern Kentucky by Tuesday and Wednesday. The models are still bouncing back and forth about how far west this moisture may actually make it, plus there is always that element of “drying” as the moisture tries to get up and over the mountains to our east, which again can having a drying effect as a result. For now we’ll hold on to some low end chances into the middle of next week with highs in the low-80s.

ABC 36 HOUR FORECAST
FRIDAY NIGHT: A few clouds and pleasant. Lows in the mid-60s.
SATURDAY: Mostly sunny and warm, a stray P.M. storm. Highs in the mid to upper-80s.
SATURDAY NIGHT: Mostly clear, still comfortable. Lows in the low-60s.