- The remnants of Tropical Storm Ophelia are expected to drift southward and offshore through Wednesday
- The Lehigh Valley will continue to see light rain and overcast skies
- The highest multi-day rainfall total reported in the Lehigh Valley was in Portland in Northampton County. The highest overall total was in Monroe County
BETHLEHEM, Pa. — The remnants of Tropical Storm Ophelia will drift slowly southward and offshore through Wednesday, the National Weather Service said, bringing a raw start to the week for the Lehigh Valley.
Early Monday, what was left of the storm sat just southeast of Philadelphia, in south New Jersey, as areas of rain continued to pivot around the low.
The Lehigh Valley was getting the brunt of the heaviest rain — more a heavy mist or drizzle than actual showers. But the weather service said as the low continued to spin off to the southeast, it would draw more concentrated precipitation back into the area.
The short-term outlook
Less than a half-inch of rain is expected Monday, with localized rainfall of around an inch possible across northwest New Jersey and the southern Poconos.
The other main concern will be the increasing wind gusts, the latest NWS forecast discussion said. Gusts as high as 35 to 40 mph will be possible at the coast, with gusts generally around 20 to 30 mph inland.
“These higher gusts will initially be limited to the northern Jersey Shore before spreading from north to south as the low continues to pivot away offshore,” the forecast discussion said.
With rain and overcast skies continuing, high temperatures are expected to be mainly in the upper 50s to low 60s Monday and Tuesday. Temperatures in the mid- to upper 60s are expected for the remainder of the week.
The latest rainfall totals
Here are the latest rainfall totals reported from Ophelia from the CoCoRaHS Mapping System, as reported to the weather service (precipitation totals reported from Saturday through Monday morning):
Northampton County
Easton — 2.27 in.
Easton WNW — 1.88 in.
Bethlehem NW — 1.73 in.
Portland — 2.45 in.
Lehigh County
Allentown WNW — 1.65 in.
Bethlehem WSW — 1.76 in.
Emmaus — 2.00 in.
Schnecksville — 1.48 in.
Additional totals reported by the weather service Monday morning:
Berks County
Hopewell — 3.46 in.
New Morgan — 3.02 in.
Bucks County
Langhorne — 3.42 in.
Chester County
Glenmoore 4.11 in
Pottstown 3.68 in
Valley Forge 3.66 in
Glenmoore 3.45 in
Spring City 3.27 in
Scotrun, in Monroe County, reported the highest rainfall total in Pennsylvania at 5.53 inches.
