Flash flood warnings contracted Thursday to 26 active alerts spanning 9 states — down from 41 warnings across 12 states and the District of Columbia a day earlier — but the National Weather Service continued to signal dangerous conditions from Appalachia through the Gulf Coast as rivers rose and roads flooded across multiple counties.
The contraction in alert count does not mark a clear end to the threat. West Virginia held the highest concentration of warnings Thursday, with active alerts covering Barbour, Gilmer, Harrison, Lewis, and Randolph counties in the state’s central and northeastern interior. That five-county cluster signals the flood pattern has tightened its grip on Appalachia even as the broader footprint narrowed from Wednesday’s peak. Ohio’s Washington and Pickaway counties also remained under flash flood warnings.
East Tennessee recorded some of the most directly reported impacts Thursday morning. The National Weather Service office in Morristown issued warnings for portions of Cocke and Greene counties after local law enforcement reported thunderstorms producing heavy rain and flash flooding across multiple roads in the warned area. Rainfall totals in Cocke County reached between 3 and 5 inches; a second warning covering northeastern Cocke County and southwestern Greene County recorded between 2 and 4 inches. Both warnings ran through 11:30 a.m. EDT.
In Mississippi, the National Weather Service office in Jackson issued a river flood warning — separate from the flash flood warnings elsewhere in the region — for the Pearl River above Philadelphia, projecting minor flooding from this afternoon through Friday morning. The agency noted that at a gauge level of 13 feet, water will begin affecting Burnside Lake Water Park in Neshoba County.
Alabama, Indiana, Louisiana, Texas, and Washington state each held at least one active warning Thursday, sustaining the event’s broad national reach from the Pacific Northwest to the Deep South. Texas remained within the active warning zone; readers tracking Houston weather should consult current National Weather Service advisories for updated local conditions.
The National Weather Service urged drivers across all warned areas to turn around, don’t drown when encountering flooded roads, noting that most flood deaths occur in vehicles.
Thursday’s 26-warning total marks roughly a 37 percent reduction from Wednesday’s peak, but a nine-state footprint stretching from Appalachian valleys to Gulf Coast lowlands signals the multi-day flood threat has not yet cleared. National Weather Service field offices across the region are expected to issue updated statements through Thursday afternoon as conditions continue to develop.