Parts of Fuquay-Varina Flood After Downpour Douses Triangle

Although the downpour was needed, some roads in Fuquay-Varina suffered as water flooded the area. West Spring Street was one area under water Sunday night.

Flood watches were up in coastal counties, where rain was expected to last through the day. Bands of heavy rain rumbled through the Triangle, and the National Weather Service said as much as 2 to 3 inches of rain were possible, and local flooding might occur.

One report listed 2.2 inches of rain in 20 minutes in Wake County northeast of Raleigh.

Police agencies were kept busy with a rash of accidents, though none reported serious injuries.

The weather service station at Raleigh-Durham International Airport reported just over three-quarters of an inch of rain had fallen. At Horace Williams Airport in Chapel Hill, the rain gauge showed 1.22 inches of rain had fallen by 8 a.m. Sunday. In Fayetteville, the airport weather station had collected 1.14 inches of rain.

The drought statewide hung on, however. Data from Asheville showed that area had its driest May since record-keeping began there in 1965, with just under an inch of rain falling in the entire 31 days. As the Barry system tracked along the coast after crossing Florida, Asheville drew less than a tenth of an inch of rain.

Forecasters expected the low-pressure system to keeping moving northeast and away from North Carolina, and cooler and dry air was forecast for the first part of the week. Later in the week, hot temperatures are on tap, according to WRAL meteorologist Elizabeth Gardner.

Rainfall in the Triangle had been about 4 inches below normal before the Barry system arrived.

"This is a blessing," said Bob Buning, an employee at MacRae's Bait Shop in Homosassa, where boaters had returned to the Homosassa River by Saturday afternoon. "We needed this rain really bad."