2 NJ Storms, One Resembling Nor'easter, In Forecast

Two storms are expected to rumble through New Jersey this week – and both could give us our biggest taste of wintry weather yet.

The National Weather Service has issued a hazardous weather outlook as heavy rain is expected to begin after 8 p.m. Monday and last until mid-day Tuesday. Winds could exceed 20 mph mid-day Tuesday and Sussex County could get a wintry mix.

The bigger storm, however, is expected to come Thursday and Friday, when a coastal storm resembling a nor'easter may bring heavy precipitation and gusty winds to the area, according to the National Weather Service.

In that storm, all of New Jersey could get sleet and North and Central Jersey could get a wintry mix after 5 p.m. on Thursday, according to the National Weather Service.

While there could be a period of slick conditions, the Monday-Tuesday storm is expected to bring a round of soaking rain from Richmond, Virginia, to Philadelphia, New Jersey New York City and Boston, according to AccuWeather.

"Rainfall in most areas will be between 0.75 of an inch and 1.25 inches, which can cause flooding of streets and poor drainage areas because of how hard the rain could come down for a time," Thompson said in an AccuWeather release.

The heaviest rain will fall during the overnight hours of Monday from Philadelphia and New Jersey to New York City, which can lead to street flooding that impacts the Tuesday morning commute, Thompson said. Airline passengers throughout the I-95 corridor in the Northeast may face delays on Tuesday due to the rain and/or low-hanging clouds.

Then, the potentially more impactful storm aiming for the eastern United States late this week can be complex and far-reaching, with wintry weather spreading over a portion of the Midwest as windswept rain once again soaks the Northeast coast, according to AccuWeather.

Here is the forecast:

• Monday: Partly sunny, with a high near 48. Light and variable wind becoming south around 6 mph in the afternoon.
• Monday night: Rain, mainly after 9pm. Low around 42. Light east wind becoming southeast 5 to 10 mph after midnight. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New precipitation amounts between a half and three quarters of an inch possible.
• Tuesday: Rain, mainly before noon. High near 53. Southeast wind 10 to 15 mph becoming northwest in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 25 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90%. New precipitation amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.
• Tuesday night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 31. Northwest wind around 10 mph.
• Wednesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 41. Northwest wind 9 to 11 mph.
• Wednesday night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 26.
• Thursday: A chance of rain and snow (just rain in the Jersey Shore and South Jersey) before 11am, then rain likely. Partly sunny, with a high near 41. Chance of precipitation is 60%.
• Thursday night: Rain likely. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 39. Chance of precipitation is 70%.
• Friday: Rain likely, mainly before 1pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 52. Chance of precipitation is 60%.

Tom Davis photos