Remnants of Tropical Storm Cindy forecast to bring heavy rainfall to part of Arkansas

Up to 6 inches of rainfall will be possible as Tropical Storm Cindy affects parts of Arkansas, according to the National Weather Service in North Little Rock.
Up to 6 inches of rainfall will be possible as Tropical Storm Cindy affects parts of Arkansas, according to the National Weather Service in North Little Rock.

A tropical storm churning toward the Texas-Louisiana coast in the Gulf of Mexico is set to bring heavy rainfall to southeastern Arkansas later this week, forecasters say.

Tropical Storm Cindy was 170 miles southwest of Morgan City, La., and 160 miles southeast of Galveston, Texas, as of about 1 p.m. Wednesday. It was moving north-northwest at around 9 mph.

At that time, the third named tropical storm of 2017 had weakened slightly, with maximum sustained winds dropping from 60 mph to 50 mph, the National Hurricane Center said.

The tropical storm is set to make landfall near the Texas and Louisiana border later Wednesday before dissipating into a tropical depression as it enters southern Arkansas, according to the latest advisory.

A tropical depression designation carries the possibility of maximum sustained winds below 39 mph.

The National Weather Service’s office in North Little Rock said the remnants of Tropical Storm Cindy will result in several inches of rain in Arkansas, with the best chances Thursday night and into Friday morning.

Areas south-southeast of Pine Bluff are forecast to see between 4 and 6 inches of rainfall with outlying portions of the state expected to receive as much as 4 inches.

In Little Rock, up to 3 inches of rain will be possible.

A few of the storms could turn severe, especially Thursday in southeast Arkansas, the weather service said.

The primary threat is damaging winds, but isolated tornadoes cannot be ruled out, according to an outlook.

Meteorologists say the precipitation will taper off Saturday as drier air enters Arkansas and as the remainder of the tropical storm pushes into Tennessee.

As of Wednesday afternoon, the governors of Louisiana and Alabama had already declared a state of emergency because of the looming threat of dangerous flash flooding along their coasts.

A waterspout came ashore in Biloxi, Miss., early Wednesday. No injuries were reported, but fences, trees and power lines were reported damaged, The Associated Press reported.

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