Today expected to be the hottest day of the year in Chattanooga area

Tuesday, July 1, 2014

photo Forecast for July 1-7
photo Water covers Florida Avenue in Dayton, Tenn., on Monday after heavy rain swept through the area.

Just after Bledsoe County, Tenn., residents said goodbye to weather that dumped 6 inches of rain there, forecasters predict the hottest day of the year for the Chattanooga region.

Today's high across Southeast Tennessee and parts of North Georgia is expected to be 95. But the heat index will make it feel more like 100 or 102, said Nick Austin, WRCB-TV Channel 3 meteorologist.

The heat will make it unsafe to be outside for an extended period of time for children, the elderly and people with breathing problems and could lead to heat exhaustion and heat stroke, Austin said.

Wednesday is also expected to be hot, with a high reaching 93 and a heat index in the upper 90s.

By Friday, temperatures will drop. In Chattanooga, highs will be in the upper 80s on Independence Day.

Today's hot and humid weather with little expected rainfall is a contrast to Monday morning when the National Weather Service issued flood or flash flood warnings for Bledsoe, northern Hamilton, northern Bradley, southern Meigs, McMinn and Rhea counties.

The Weather Service issued the warnings between 6:30 and 8 a.m. after getting several reports of water-covered roads, said Winton. But by 11 a.m., the roads cleared.

Bledsoe County Library Director Carolyne Knight said her husband called Monday morning to warn of bad road conditions. But the roads had cleared by the time she drove to work on U.S. Highway 127 through Cold Springs, one of the areas covered with water earlier in the day.

Six inches of rain fell west of Pikeville on Monday. That was the bulls-eye of the heaviest rain, said Anthony Cavallucci, a National Weather Service meteorologist. TVA reported that Pikeville itself got about 3.18 inches.

Meigs and Rhea counties and the northern part of Hamilton County got 3 to 4 inches of rain. Meigs is a really long county, and the northern part of it hardly got any rain, said Cavallucci.

Contact staff writer Yolanda Putman at yputman@timesfreepress.com or 757-6431.