Rain chances ramp up to close out the week

Mainly dry Thursday ahead of showers and thunderstorm chances

LEXINGTON, Ky. (ABC 36 NEWS NOW) – We’re off to another mainly dry start across central and eastern Kentucky on this Thursday. A little more moisture is sneaking back into the region, so you’ll probably notice it feeling a bit more humid this afternoon, especially as temperatures rise into the mid and upper 80s.

Most areas will stay dry through the day, though we can’t completely rule out a stray shower or storm, especially across the higher terrain in southeastern Kentucky later this afternoon. That said, the vast majority of us will get through the day without any rainfall.

By Friday, things begin to change. A slow-moving area of low pressure out to our west will start to throw some deeper moisture in our direction. That means rain and storm chances will increase as we move through the afternoon and evening hours Friday, and they’ll stick around through the weekend.

This doesn’t look like a severe weather setup, but it does look like one that could bring slow-moving downpours. With plenty of moisture in the air and light steering winds, any storms that develop will be capable of dropping localized heavy rain, and some minor flooding can’t be ruled out—especially in typical flood-prone spots. Father’s Day weekend plans won’t be a total washout, but you’ll want to have a backup indoor plan and keep an eye on radar.

Looking ahead into next week, the unsettled weather pattern looks like it will linger into at least the first half of the week, with daily chances for showers and thunderstorms continuing. We may see slightly drier air try to push in by midweek, which could help trim back rain chances somewhat, but it’s far from a guarantee at this point.