A Rainstorm Is Finally Heading Toward New York City, Forecasters Say

NEW YORK CITY — Trees, rejoice: forecasters say New Yorkers should expect up to an inch of rainfall this week.

The National Weather Service predicts a 90 percent chance of rain on Wednesday night and a 40 percent chance of rain from Thursday night into Friday night, Meteorologist Bill Goodman told Patch.

According to Goodman, the predicted rain would come from a strong storm system brewing near the Great Lakes, which is expected to combine with tropical storm Sara, which started in Honduras and is swinging up north along the east coast.

"We do have a low-pressure system that's forecasted to develop near the Great Lakes, and then a secondary low that may develop by the mid-Atlantic region or right near the city," Goodman told Patch.

"It looks like a pretty potent system that doesn't have a lot of moisture to work with, but because of its strength, it could probably wring out a good inch of rainfall from Wednesday into Thursday night."

Though an inch may seem small, it would mean a lot to New York City, which is currently on drought watch: It would be the most rain the city has seen since late summer, which, despite a brief drizzle last week, is in a historic dry spell, Goodman said.

"It's been a really long dry streak," he said.

Here is the full forecast this week, from the National Weather Service.

Monday
Sunny, with a high near 64. Northwest winds blow 11-15 miles per hour, with gusts as high as 25 mph.

Monday night
Mostly clear, with a low around 47. Northwest winds blow around 11 mph, with gusts as high as 21 mph.

Tuesday
Sunny, with a high near 57. Northwest wind around 8 mph.

Tuesday night
Partly cloudy, with a low around 49 degrees. West winds blow around 6 mph becoming light and variable.

Wednesday
Partly sunny, with a high near 58. North wind 5-7 mph.

Wednesday night

Low around 48, with a 90 percent chance of precipitation. New precipitation could amount between a half and three-quarters of an inch.

Thursday
Rain likely, mainly before 1 p.m. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 52. There is a 60 percent chance of precipitation.

Thursday night
A 40 percent chance of rain. Mostly cloudy, with a low of around 41 degrees.

Friday
A 40 percent chance of rain. Partly sunny, with a high near 47.

Friday night
A 30 percent chance of rain before 1 a.m. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 43.

Saturday
Partly sunny, with a high near 49.

Saturday night
Partly cloudy, with a low near 43.

Sunday
Mostly sunny, with a high near 50.

For questions and tips, email Miranda.Levingston@Patch.com.