UPDATED 3:23 p.m.
The National Weather Service has issued a flash flood warning in Transylvania, Buncombe, McDowell and Henderson Counties until 4:30 p.m. today.
An alert from the NWS states that “Between 1 and 2 inches of rain have fallen since 5:30 a.m., with upwards of 2 to 4 inches since last night.” It predicts an additional 1 to 3 inches may be possible as a strong cold front moves out of the southwest through the mountains. “Water is rising rapidly along small creeks and streams,” NWS officials report, “and flash flooding is expected to begin shortly.”
Areas which may be effected by flooding include Downtown Asheville, Marion, East Asheville, Arden, West Asheville, North Asheville, Black Mountain, Woodfin, Fletcher, Swannanoa, Hendersonville, Brevard, Mills River, Fletcher, Flat Rock. Etowah, Mountain Home, Laurel Park, Rosman and Looking Glass, according to NWS. In addition, forecasters expect “rapid rises on the French Broad River and associated tributaries, including but not limited to Mud Creek, Bat Fort Creek, the Little River, the Swannanoa River and the Davidson River.”
Avery, Burke Mountains, Caldwell Mountains, Mitchell, Polk Mountains, Rutherford mountains and Yancey counties are also under a flash flood watch until this evening. The National Weather Service predicts anywhere from two to four inches of rain will fall through the course of the day, with higher totals possible in certain localities.
The Asheville Fire Department has temporarily closed roads around the Lakeshore area in North Asheville this morning. Police and fire officials are also monitoring conditions in Biltmore Village, Kennilworth, the River Arts District and along the Swannanoa River, with reports of flooding along Highway 70 and several other roads.
As 3:00 p.m., the city reports that much of the flooding along roadways has receded, with the exception of portions of Riverside Drive, Craven Street, and NCDOT roads at Glendale to Caledonia Road and State Street to Riverview Drive. a full listed of updated road closures can be found at coablog.ashevillenc.gov.
AFD has advised residents to avoid flooded areas. Travelers should exercise caution if commuting on any major thoroughfare or if driving in a flood-prone or low-lying area.
According to Ray’s Weather Service, rain will continue through the afternoon hours and may be heavy at times. Temperatures will reach the low-to-mid 60s during the day, with raining clearing and temperatures cooling to the high 30s during the evening hours and overnight.
For weather updates, visit ashevilleweather.com/Forecast/Asheville or forecast.weather.gov. For a list of city roads currently closed due to flooding, visit The City of Asheville’s Facebook page.
This is God’s punishment for Ok’ing yet another hotel in town.
This is God’s punishment for electing a Democrat to any public office.
This is God’s punishment for paying local workers a living wage.
This is God’s punishment for trying to regulate guns in any way.
Please choose 2 of the above choices and support your choices with primary sources, concrete facts and articulate observations.
Please refrain from using Internet abbreviations, capitalizing words in mid sentence or Sarah Palin-esque terms that do not exist in any Standard American Dictionary.