Heavy Rain and Snow May Increase Chance for Roof Collapse
There may be a longer period of sleet and freezing rain across the interior of Rhode Island lasting until mid afternoon hours due to the deep snow cover keeping surface temperatures much lower. The Providence metro area should changeover to rain by late morning or early afternoon. The rain line will be northern sections by mid afternoon.
We should see at least an inch of rain across much of the area. In addition the combination of heavy snow from last weeks storm and again today along with a period of freezing rain may increase the risk for roof collapses in our area.
Do expect poor drainage and urban type flooding this afternoon and early evening in the Rhode Island area in response to moderate to heavy rain at times along with snow clogged storm drains. This may impact the late day commute.
The rain should taper off by midnight and stay cloudy through the night. Not a lot of cold air as the storm pulls away from the region and we should not expect a big freeze up tonight. There will be some spotty black ice especially on secondary roads.
Another storm could impact Rhode Island late Thursday night into Friday morning. Several inches in most of Rhode Island with some rain along the coast. This will likely impact the morning rush hour causing travel difficulties. Very cold air returns for this weekend with daytime highs only in the lower 20's and wind chills below zero.