Nashville sits on the Cumberland River, which rose to catastrophic levels during the May 2010 flood, when an extraordinary two-day rainfall total, among the heaviest ever recorded for the region, overwhelmed the river and its tributaries and caused billions of dollars in damage across the city, a defining event in the region’s modern history. Under normal conditions the city receives around 1,270 mm (about 50 inches) of rain a year, spread fairly evenly across the seasons with a spring peak in severe thunderstorm activity. Because that 2010 event demonstrated how quickly conditions can escalate far beyond any seasonal average, radar tracking of approaching heavy rain is now treated as a critical tool by both residents and the city’s emergency management. NWS Doppler radar KOHX (Nashville) covers the region.
Learn more: Flash Flood Warning Signs on Radar · Open the full Rain Map