Long Island weather: Heavy rain could cause minor flooding

Small Business Saturday shoppers should hit local stores this morning to enjoy warmer temperatures before rain rolls into Long Island this afternoon.

The forecast includes high temperatures from the upper 40s to the lower 50s — 15 to 20 degrees above Friday's high of 32 degrees at Islip, according to meteorologist John Murray with the National Weather Service in Upton.

"We are looking at warmer temperatures today," he said, noting that the highs will feel like "quite a rebound and feeling, relatively speaking, more comfortable" after the record-breaking arctic cold of Thanksgiving and Black Friday.

But the warmer weather comes with a price, joked News 12 Long Island meteorologist Bruce Avery, as rain moves in later during the shopping day.

The chances of rain will increase through the afternoon, Murray said. Showers are expected to be moderate to heavy in the evening, continue overnight and taper off Sunday around 7 a.m. The heavy rains could cause brief, minor flooding in some areas, including Peconic Bay, the Twin Forks, and the western part of the Long Island Sound, the weather service said. 

Avery said street ponding is possible overnight, with southeast winds of 10 to 20 mph.

Sunday should be dry the rest of the day, Murray said, with highs in the lower 50s across the Island.

The normal high temperature at Islip this time of year is 50 degrees, he said. 

Moderate rain is expected again Monday with a high of 52 and a low of 38, Avery said.

The rest of the week should be in the low to mid-40s, with sunny skies and some breezes, he said.

With Khristopher J. Brooks