Flood watch issued for much of eastern Idaho on Thursday

POCATELLO — The National Weather Service in Pocatello issued a flood watching Thursday morning. The watch is specifically in place for flash flooding and has been issued for all of eastern Idaho. The watch is in place through Thursday evening.

Part of the reason for the wide watch area is that the south hills (the areas between Rockland to Bear Lake), have seen almost two inches of rain over the past 48 hours. Flash flooding, the warning states, isn’t currently likely, but any area that has seen repeated rain or thunderstorms this week could experience localized flooding.

“The ground is pretty saturated,” meteorologist Dawn Harmon of the NWS told EastIdahoNews.com. With more rain and thunderstorms in the forecast, these areas will be, “particularly susceptible to localized flash flooding issues.”

The weather service anticipates the most rain between 1 p.m. and 8 p.m. The heaviest rain is likely to occur in the areas from Pocatello and Soda Springs up to Rexburg and Driggs.

“That, sort of, box will probably see the most rain,” Harmon said, but emphasized a much larger area is under flood watch.

Remain aware of the weather and monitor the radar if you are concerned about any susceptible areas across eastern Idaho.

Find the latest local weather at EastIdahoNews.com.