Flash flood watch extended through Saturday

Heavy downpour caused by a low chance of a tropical storm forming over Central Texas has extended the flash flood watch over several Rio Grande Valley counties until Saturday morning.

The watch is slated for Cameron, Kenedy, Brooks, Hidalgo, and Willacy counties and now also includes Starr County, according to the National Weather Service in Brownsville.

The continuous rainfall in the area is believed to be caused by an upper level trough of low pressure in Central Texas, which the National Hurricane Center says has a less than 30 percent possibility of becoming a tropical cyclone over the next 48 hours, said Tim Speece, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Brownsville.

But upper level winds are predicted to sweep the storm to the North and Northeast, Speece said. Meanwhile, the center is cautioning local heavy rainfall, he said.

The lower Valley has received three to six inches of rainfall over the last three days. The NWS reports chance for scattered and numerous showers and thunderstorms throughout the Valley until Saturday.

“It is basically just what we need to give us good rainfall without all the damaging winds and storm surge,” Speece said. “It is sort of the best of both worlds.”