A storm system cruising in from the Midwest will bring a quenching rain Tuesday with very little cold air in its wake for Thanksgiving.
A light rain will begin at daybreak on Tuesday, with pockets of freezing drizzle above 2,500 feet in Garrett County. Even there, the freezing drizzle will quickly change to rain with no impact to travel. Only elevated surfaces like windshields, trees and metallic surfaces will see a light glaze before precipitation changes to all rain by 9 to 10 a.m.
Rain will be heaviest Tuesday afternoon before tapering to drizzle in the evening. Wind gusts of 20-25 mph will accompany the rain in Garrett County, but probably not enough to instigate power outages.
The biggest concern for travelers heading to and from for the Thanksgiving holiday Tuesday besides the occasional heavy burst of rain will be the dense fog that will limit visibility to under one-quarter of a mile Tuesday night.
The most vulnerable spots for the dense fog will be the eastern slopes of the Alleghenies, including Keyser’s Ridge, Savage Mountain, Martin’s Mountain and Sideling Hill. The fog will lift Wednesday morning and clouds will increase, but it will stay dry and mild for late-November standards.
One inch of rain Tuesday will help with the growing rainfall deficit for November. Much of the region is more than an inch behind average for the month and up to 1.5 to 2 inches behind for the autumn season.
A more seasonable pattern will transpire for the holiday weekend with a few flurries on Sunday.