Potomac’s Tuesday Weather Outlook, Tornado Watch

Updated 1 p.m.: The National Weather Service has issued a tornado watch for Montgomery County and much of the area until 7 p.m.

Periods of heavy downpours are also expected, which could lead to localized flash flooding.

The severe weather is likely to run from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m.

It’s going to be rainy and windy for the rest of the day into the evening, according to the National Weather Service. 

Showers may produce up to an inch and a half of rain around Potomac, MD, while wind gusts could reach 26 mph into the evening. Foggy conditions may exist later in the night.

Around this time last year, we had several reports of drivers getting caught in standing water.

Authorities urge drivers to use extreme caution when driving during the storm. "Never drive through any standing or flowing water," said Cpt Oscar Garcia of Montgomery County Fire and Rescue told Patch last year. "There's no way to know how deep the water is."

Rather than attempting to cross flooded roadways, drivers should turn around and take a safer route.

Pepco is reporting outages caused by the storms on its website. So far over 4,000 customers are experiencing power issues across the DC metro area, though less than 40 of the affected customers are in Potomac.