Wet weekend drips to an end

A band of severe thunderstorms and heavy showers moved through eastern counties in the early afternoon, prompting warnings for Wayne and Sampson counties. One storm appeared to be dumping rain at the rate of an inch an hour.

The chance of rain and thunderstorms continued to grow in the afternoon, WRAL meteorologist Mike Moss said.

"One or two of the storms could turn severe, with locally heavy rains and strong downburst winds," Moss said.

Showers and storms will taper off during the night, although lingering high humidity could create patches of fog.

The low pressure system will drift off the North Carolina coast Monday, taking with it the humidity and chances of rain. Behind it, drier air arrives.

"We've got high pressure that may build in and give us a couple nice days from later tomorrow into Tuesday and Wednesday," Moss said. "We heat up those days, mid 90s for highs."