Flash-flood warnings spread across Appalachia as heavy rain persists

Flash-flood warnings tightened across southern West Virginia Sunday evening as Doppler radar showed thunderstorms dumping 1 to 2 inches of rain in northwestern Logan County and more downpours were moving across the central Appalachians. Heavy rainfall and severe thunderstorm threats were affecting the Ohio/Tennessee Valleys, central Appalachians and Southeast, with saturated ground leaving little margin for another round of rain.

In Middle Tennessee, a Flood Watch stayed in effect until 6 p.m. Sunday, and National Weather Service Nashville expected medium to high rain and thunderstorm chances to continue through Tuesday. Farther east, the risk was highest in places that had already taken significant rainfall, where soils were saturated and additional showers could run off fast into roads, creeks and low ground.

National Weather Service Charleston issued a Flash Flood Warning for southeastern Mingo County, West Virginia, until 9:15 p.m. EDT Sunday and extended another warning for northwestern Logan County until 7:30 p.m. EDT. At 6:06 p.m. EDT, Charleston’s Doppler radar indicated thunderstorms producing heavy rain in northwestern Logan County, where flash flooding was ongoing or expected to begin shortly. A larger Flood Watch covered a wide swath of the central Appalachians and Ohio Valley, including Cabell, Kanawha, Logan, Mingo, Boone, McDowell and Wyoming counties in West Virginia, along with nearby counties in Kentucky, Virginia and Ohio, and remained in effect until 11 p.m. EDT Sunday.

The most vulnerable spots included small creeks and streams, urban areas, highways, streets, underpasses and other low-lying areas. In the mountains, where water can funnel quickly through hollows and narrow valleys, repeated storms can turn a routine summer downpour into a fast-moving flood threat with little warning.