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Weekend flood watch for Philly area, Jersey Shore: What you need to know

"We could potentially have basically a whole month's worth in just a few days." A flood watch is in effect starting 6 p.m. Saturday through Sunday evening as periods of heavy rain, possibly up to 3 inches in total, soak the region.

Umbrellas — and galoshes — will be in order this weekend as heavy rains are predicted through Sunday. ALEJANDRO A. ALVAREZ / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER )
Umbrellas — and galoshes — will be in order this weekend as heavy rains are predicted through Sunday. ALEJANDRO A. ALVAREZ / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER )Read moreALEJANDRO A. ALVAREZ

A typical Philadelphia February brings just 2.65 inches of rain. Not this year, if the forecasts for downpours starting Saturday night are accurate.

"We could potentially have basically a whole month's worth in just a few days," said Sarah Johnson, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service station in Mount Holly.

A flood watch is in effect starting at 6 p.m. Saturday through Sunday evening as periods of heavy rain – an anticipated 1 to 3 inches, total – are expected to soak an area stretching from the Lehigh Valley to the Jersey Shore, and south to northeastern Maryland.

Chances of rain begin to increase Saturday afternoon and into the evening, Johnson said.

"Current thinking is the highest rain amounts could fall along the Interstate 95 corridor," she said. "In addition to the fact that they could get the most rain, that area is more urbanized and so typically more vulnerable to flooding. But anyplace in the watch area should be monitoring the forecast in the next few days."

Flooding is most likely in areas with poor drainage – that is, cities like Philadelphia, where any significant rainfall overwhelms the stormwater-management system, sending raw sewage into the river. But it could also affect small streams and creeks.

For now, though, it's just a flood watch, meaning conditions are potentially favorable for flooding; that's a step below a flood warning, which means a flood is imminent or already occurring.