Long Island weather forecast: After 3 soggy days, clearing ahead

Long Islanders paid for it — three days in a row of rainy evening commutes — and now they'll be treated to a sunny kickoff to the weekend, meteorologists said.

The rain and mist will clear out by noon Friday, when temperatures will reach a summerlike high of 77 and a crisp low in the 50s at night, the National Weather Service said.

"We are finally going to have some improvement," said meteorologist Tim Morrin in the service's Upton office. "The sun is going to be abundant for the rest of ... [Friday] afternoon."

No wet clouds will mar things either on Saturday. Sunday will be partly sunny, but the rain and thunder could make another appearance, according to the forecast.

It was a little unusual for rain to persist three straight days at around the same time of the evening, but the precipitation and nighttime temperatures in the 50s were par for the season, Morrin said.

Still, the Island escaped the disruptive thunderstorms and a tornado that hit areas to the west. Meteorologists said the cooler air over the ocean tempered the impact of the thunderstorms; heat fuels storm clouds.

"They were dampened out by the cooler temperatures," said Bill Korbel, chief meteorologist for News 12 Long Island.

A band of storm clouds was moving over Long Island Thursday after rush hour, and rain was expected to taper off after midnight. However, there was still a chance of a heavy shower in the early morning hours Friday, Morrin said.

There was a slight to moderate risk for flash flooding through Thursday evening for the Metro New York City area, including Nassau County, the weather service said. For Long Island overall, there could be some urban and poor-drainage flooding.

Islip had about one-third to half an inch of rain Thursday. That was not enough to cause major flooding, especially because the Island has sandy soil, which drains well, Morrin said.