Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 356 AM EDT Sat Apr 7 2018 Valid 12Z Sat Apr 7 2018 - 12Z Mon Apr 9 2018 ...Heavy rain expected for the West Coast and parts of the Deep South through Saturday... Much of the southeast U.S. and Gulf Coast region will have widespread rain through Saturday afternoon as a strong cold front advances south and a wave of low pressure develops along the front. There is a slight risk of severe thunderstorms from the Florida Panhandle to southeast North Carolina through Saturday evening before the front exits the coast. Rainfall amounts of 1 to 2 inches are likely across the Carolinas, and some wet snow is possible on the northern edge of the precipitation shield across parts of Virginia as the colder air continues to advect southward into the region. The best prospects for accumulating snow will be over the central and southern Appalachians. An ongoing atmospheric river event is spreading copious amounts of rainfall to the northern half of California and southwest Oregon. A surge of deep tropical moisture ahead of a cold front is expected to result in several inches of rainfall, especially near the western sides of mountain ranges. With the majority of this event being all rain for the higher mountains, a change-over to snow showers is expected later on Saturday as snow levels lower behind the cold front. Significant rainfall is also expected across much of the Intermountain West as the moisture surge moves inland. Hamrick Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_ndfd.php