Update at 9:35 a.m. — Departing flights are experiencing a “gate hold” at DCA. Delays of at least 30 minutes should be expected, and could get worse throughout the day.
Update at 8:55 a.m. — There is a ground stop for flights arriving at Reagan National Airport due to the weather. Check with your airline for the status on any outgoing flights.
The National Weather Service has put Arlington and the rest of the metro area under a Severe Thunderstorm Watch until 11:00 a.m. That’s in addition to the Flash Flood watch that went into effect at midnight and will last until 8:00 p.m.
NWS notes several rounds of strong storms could soak the area. That could create trouble due to the level of ground saturation from the heavy rains that caused flooding earlier this week. From NWS:
* SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL LIKELY MOVE ACROSS THE REGION
THIS MORNING AND PRODUCE HEAVY DOWNPOURS. RAINFALL AMOUNTS IN
EXCESS OF 1 INCH ARE POSSIBLE. ANOTHER ROUND OF STORMS MAY BRING
HEAVY RAIN THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING WITH AN ADDITIONAL 1 TO 2
INCHES POSSIBLE.* WITH THE GROUND ALREADY SATURATED FROM HEAVY RAINFALL DURING
THE PAST WEEK…ONLY AN INCH OF RAINFALL IN AN HOUR COULD
PRODUCE FLASH FLOODING OF STREAMS AND LOW LYING AREAS.PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…
A FLASH FLOOD WATCH MEANS THAT CONDITIONS MAY DEVELOP THAT LEAD
TO FLASH FLOODING. FLASH FLOODING IS A VERY DANGEROUS SITUATION.YOU SHOULD MONITOR LATER FORECASTS AND BE PREPARED TO TAKE ACTION
SHOULD FLASH FLOOD WARNINGS BE ISSUED.
Although the storms have the potential to bring damaging winds and the word “derecho” is being thrown around, the Capital Weather Gang doesn’t expect it to be as strong as the derecho that struck last year.
The Office of Personnel Management has kept all federal offices open, but employees have the option of unscheduled leave or unscheduled telework.