Weekend washout targets millions across the Upper Midwest in areas already experiencing wettest year on record
The FOX Forecast Center said it's currently too early to nail down exact timing and threats for the storms, but as we get closer, the forecast will become more clear.
Ridge-riding storms to bring heavy rain to the Great Lakes into next week
A ridge of high pressure is going to settle over the Northern tier of the U.S. heading into next week, bringing rain to the Great Lakes. Some parts of the Great Lakes have already made 2026 their wettest year on record, like Green Bay, Wisconsin.
THE TAKEAWAY
- Ridge-riding storms are taking hold of the North this weekend.
- They're bringing rain to the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes, where some places have seen their wettest year on record.
- Rain and storms move into the Northeast Monday and hang on through Wednesday.
After a few quiet weather days in the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes, a soggy weather pattern is returning through ridge-riding storms, bringing a renewed flash flood threat to the region.
As a ridge of high pressure remains across the South, energy and storms will continue riding along its edge from the Northern Plains into the Upper Midwest, Great Lakes and Northeast through early next week.
(FOX Weather)
With plenty of moisture, southerly winds at the ground will be pulling humid air north, allowing storms capable of intense rainfall rates and localized flash flooding every day through Monday.
On Sunday and Monday, an area of low pressure coming from the Rockies will increase moisture and instability as it moves into southern Canada.
WHAT IS A RIDGE RIDER AND HOW DO THEY FORM?
According to the FOX Forecast Center, as the system tracks north, locally heavy rain will develop across portions of the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes into early next week.
(FOX Weather)
Rainfall rates of 1 to 2 inches per hour are possible for some areas in the Midwest and Great Lakes, the FOX Forecast Center said.
With daily rain chances and already saturated ground from recent moisture, a level 1 out of 4 flash flood threat is in effect from Saturday until Monday.
(FOX Weather)
For some locations in the Great Lakes, 2026 has already proven to be their wettest year on record.
Green Bay, Wisconsin, has received more than 29 inches of rain so far this year, which is more than 7 inches above average.
Rain drops collect in a puddle Friday, Oct. 31, 2014.
(Paul Chinn/The San Francisco Chronicle / Getty Images)
Other locations also experiencing their wettest year on record include Alpena, Michigan, which is more than 12 inches above average, and Houghton Lake, Michigan, which is more than 7 inches above average, the FOX Forecast Center said.
As the moisture shifts east, it could bring several inches of rain to the Northeast into early to mid-next week.
(FOX Weather)
A level 1 out of 4 flash flood risk is present for the Northeast on Monday and will likely be extended into Tuesday and Wednesday as heavier rain moves in, the FOX Forecast Center said.
Along with the rain comes severe storms into mid-week next week for the Mid-Atlantic, Northeast and Ohio Valley.
FALL FOLIAGE FORECAST: WHY SOME AREAS MIGHT EXPERIENCE A SPOTTY SEASON
(FOX Weather)
A level 2 out of 5 severe weather threat is in effect on Wednesday for parts of New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Connecticut and Massachusetts.
Cities along the I-95 corridor, including New York City, are included in the level 2 threat on Wednesday.
Increased moisture combined with instability will allow for severe storms to move first closer to the eastern Great Lakes, then sweep the Northeast by later in the day.
NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 7: A thunderstorm crosses the Hudson River from Jersey City, New Jersey, into Lower Manhattan, seen from the 102nd-floor observation deck of the Empire State Building on August 07, 2026, in New York City.
(Gary Hershorn / Getty Images)
The FOX Forecast Center said it's currently too early to nail down exact timing and threats for the storms, but as we get closer, the forecast will become more clear.
Stay tuned to FOX Weather for the latest forecast as we track these ridge-riding storms.