NYC Weather Forecast: Rain, Thunder, 'Heavy Downpours' Possible As Storm Passes

NEW YORK, NY — Looks like April's showers arrived early this year. Prolonged periods of rain "along with a few embedded thunderstorms" were expected to hit the city Tuesday "as a frontal system slowly approaches from the west," according to the National Weather Service.

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By around 4 p.m., the worst of the storm had apparently passed, forecasters said, and no more thunder or lightning was expected to hit.

"However, as low pressure over the Mid Atlantic region starts to take shape south of Long Island" early Tuesday evening, "expect rain to fill back in over the region," the weather service warned.

The same system wreaked a particularly large amount of havoc on parts of New Jersey throughout the morning.

"Showers and thunderstorms currently over NJ will work northward into our area," the weather service said on Facebook around 9:45 a.m. "A brief period of heavy downpours possible with these storms."

The city should dry up by early the next morning. New Yorkers can expect sunny skies and temps in the upper 50s by Wednesday afternoon, forecasters said.

Things are expected to get cold and wet again, though, by end-of-week. A second storm surge is threatening to hit Thursday or Friday and last into the weekend, the weather service said — although predictions are still pretty murky on that one.

First, we'll have to sit out Tuesday's system. Here are some hour-by-hour projections for this grumpy spring weather, via DarkSky.net:

March 28 Hourly Forecast for New York City

Light rain throughout the day.

4pm - Light Rain, 44°

Chance of rain: 54%. Wind 6 mph from the NE.

5pm - Drizzle, 46°

Chance of rain: 39%. Wind 7 mph from the NE.

6pm - Light Rain, 45°

Chance of rain: 67%. Wind 6 mph from the NE.

7pm - Light Rain, 45°

Chance of rain: 71%. Wind 6 mph from the NE.

8pm - Light Rain, 45°

Chance of rain: 66%. Wind 6 mph from the NNE.

9pm - Light Rain, 45°

Chance of rain: 60%. Wind 6 mph from the NNE.

10pm - Light Rain, 45°

Chance of rain: 53%. Wind 6 mph from the NNE.

11pm - Overcast, 45°

Chance of rain: 18%. Wind 6 mph from the NNE.

12am - Mostly Cloudy, 45°

Chance of rain: 5%. Wind 5 mph from the N.

Radar image courtesy of the National Weather Service