Tampa Bay Area Flood Watch Remains Active

TAMPA BAY, FL – Tampa Bay area residents hoping to be able to dry out after Tropical Storm Colin’s march through the region will not get their chance on Tuesday. In fact, the National Weather Service has extended a flood watch for the entire region until Tuesday night.

“Showers and isolated embedded thunderstorms will continue to affect west central and southwest Florida through Tuesday as deep tropical moisture remains over the region,” the weather service wrote in a flood watch statement. “Some very heavy rainfall will be possible with additional 2 to 4 inch rainfall amounts possible.”

Residents are asked to be mindful in flood-prone areas and on local roadways.

“Residents living along rivers and faster flowing streams should remain alert to any rapid rises in water levels and be ready to move to higher ground if flooding is observed,” the weather service noted.

The flood watch includes Hillsborough, Pasco, Manatee, Pinellas, Sarasota and other nearby counties, including such communities as Westchase, Brandon, Bradenton, Sarasota, Clearwater and St. Petersburg, among others.

The watch will remain in effect until 8 p.m. Tuesday.

As of Monday evening, forecasters anticipated an 80 percent chance of storms during the daytime hours Tuesday with a 30 percent chance heading into the overnight hours. Tropical storm conditions were expected to continue through Monday night.

Rain chances remain in the cards throughout the week with a 50 percent chance of scattered storms forecast for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Those rain chances drop to about 40 percent heading into the weekend.

For an extended forecast in your neighborhood, visit your local Patch’s homepage.

Patch file photo