Jan. 25 (UPI) — On the heels of deadly, bone-chilling cold, snow and ice that claimed the lives of at least 80 people nationwide, heavy rain and potential flooding are now threatening a wide swath of the country, as temperatures warm and more precipitation is on the way.
Heavy rainfall is taking its toll on southern states, where 5 to 9 inches fell, causing widespread flooding in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Tennessee Thursday.
Parts of Texas, including the Houston area, saw as much as 8 inches of rain over the past few days.
More heavy rain is in the forecast in the South, and flood watches remain in effect through Saturday from Birmingham, Alabama, to Atlanta.
The heavy rain is also coming down in the Midwest and the Northeast.
Heavy bands of precipitation drenched areas from Illinois to Virginia. Floods have been posted in parts of the Great Lakes, Mid-Atlantic and Northeast because the rain is falling on top of the snowmelt and ice jams that were left behind by the ferocious winter storms last week.
By Friday morning, the rain will reach into Wisconsin and upper Michigan, and temperatures are expected to cause rain to flirt with the possibility of becoming snow as dusk nears.
New England will see an icy mix of rain, freezing rain and sleet during the Friday morning commute.
The damp and slightly warmer temperatures had people in at least 25 states from New Mexico to New York waking up Thursday to a blanket of heavy fog.
People in New Orleans, Chicago and Little Rock, Arkansas, New York and Philadelphia reported low to zero visibility and temperatures in the East are forecast to continue to rise.
Washington, D.C., topped out about 60 degrees Thursday, and New York and Boston were at or near 50.
The warmer air is projected to last for at least a few more days with temperatures in the 70s in Atlanta and as high as the 80s in Orlando, Fla.
