Rainfall will return to the forecast for portions of southeast Texas and southwest Louisiana later in the week.

“For the past few weeks we have had really strong high pressure over the area which created two things; limited moisture in our area and kept the winds out of the north thus keeping moisture form the Gulf of Mexico away,” Tim Humphrey, meteorologist with the National Weather Service-Lake Charles, said. “As we head into the weekend the winds will shift back to the south and bring the potential for rainfall.”

Wednesday’s forecast is for partly sunny skies with a high of 82 and a slight chance of thunderstorms by nighttime with a low around 71. Rain chances increase to 40 percent on Thursday and 50 percent on Friday. Friday night through Sunday rain chances are at 60 percent.

Humphrey said it’s still too early to be exact about the actual rain totals but as of Tuesday it appears there will be two to three inches of rain over a three day period with some isolated areas receiving higher amounts.

“Actual totals will change as we are closer to the event,” he said. “If people are really interested in knowing the detailed totals they should check the forecast closer to the Thursday and Friday timeframe.”

The rain chances will also cause slightly cooler temperatures with highs in the low 80s Wednesday through Friday and the upper 90s from Saturday to Monday.

Tides are running a foot to a foot and a half above normal across coastal sties in southeast Texas and southwest Louisiana. A coastal flood advisory is in effect through Wednesday for minor coastal flooding during times of high tide.

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