Weekend cherry blossom sightseeing threatened by heavy rainfall

BETHESDA, Md. (FOX 5 DC) - Planning on heading down to D.C. to catch a glimpse of those famous cherry blossoms? Well, then you will likely want to plan around Saturday morning, as the forecast suggests that it could be quite wet across the D.C. region. 

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Will DC’s cherry blossoms survive weekend rain?

This weekend’s heavy rain and wind could spell disaster for D.C.’s cherry blossoms. National Park Service spokesman Mike Litterst spoke with FOX 5’s Tucker Barnes Friday and said there could be problems.

"A lot of rain, heavy wind. Like you said, we're about a week in. Petals are starting to get a little weaker. And, you know, this is when we look for that severe weather that'll probably bring him down," Litterst said Friday.

"We got absolute ideal conditions," he said the weather just following peak bloom. "Once we hit peak bloom temperatures plummeted the next day. We've been below average cool temps, and that's going to keep the blossoms on - probably a couple, three, four days longer than they might normally."

Peak bloom, the period when 70% of the city's 3,700 cherry trees flower, typically last 10 days.

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After a start to spring that featured temperatures in the 70s, the season seemingly changed its mind rather quickly as Thursday afternoon featured highs only in the 40s and 50s across the D.C. region despite ample sunshine. That is likely to change heading into the weekend though, as a combination of weather systems will collide to bring some potentially heavy rain to the DC region.

READ MORE: Cherry Blossom Festival and other things to do in DC, Maryland & Virginia

The first is a moisture-rich storm system coming from the south off of the Gulf of Mexico, which remains abnormally warm as it has for the entirety of winter. The second is a chilly, dry air mass pushing eastward across the Midwest throughout the day on Friday and Saturday. 

This incoming dry air mass interacting with the southern storm will essentially squeeze it like a sponge, leading to some potentially heavy rainfall across much of the D.C. region. 

Because of the risk of 1-2" of rain, with localized amounts of 2-3" or more possible in such a short period, the National Weather Service has already issued flood watches for the Washington, D.C. and Baltimore metro regions from late Friday night through Saturday. These watches could be further expanded Friday ahead of the event. 

As for the timing, rain could start as early as the late evening hours of Friday, though it will be heaviest during the overnight hours through the morning hours of Saturday. 

READ MORE: How long do cherry blossoms last? Will peak bloom be affected by cooler temperatures?

READ MORE: Cherry Blossom Festival kicks off: Here's the history behind DC's iconic blooms

READ MORE: Peak Bloom: Here are the best days to see the cherry blossoms

We would avoid any cherry blossom viewing plans you may have on Saturday morning, as it will not be pleasant. 

The good news is this does not look like a particularly gusty system, so the blossoms should be able to survive this storm. Rain will taper off to scattered showers by the middle afternoon on Saturday, with even partial clearing possible by sunset. 

Saturday is not a washout per se, it's mostly just the first half of the day that will be wet. 

It will be much drier by the evening hours. Sunday will be the best day for blossom viewing this weekend, but it will be cool and breezy. 

Looking for signs of stronger spring warmth? Missing those 70s from last week? Well, for most of next week, we are not seeing any signs of stronger warmth in the D.C. region. 

However, by the second half of next week and approaching the Easter holiday, we do see signs that 60s may be more favored. 

At this time, however, we do not see any sustained, consistent warmth heading into early April. Early spring is known for its swings of mild and chilly weather, and that looks to continue for at least the next few weeks.