That would be before the potential main event -- Hurricane Joaquin or its variant -- gets anywhere near Philadelphia. More flooding is possible early next week.
"A dangerous weather pattern is developing for our region," the National Weather Service office in Mount Holly warned in its midday Wednesday briefing.
The threats include heavy rains, flash flooding, widespread river flooding, beach erosion, and power-line-ripping winds. Those would be familiar to those who endured the ravages of Sandy, which made landfall near Atlantic City on Oct. 29, 2012.
At 11 p.m. Wednesday Joaquin had blown up into a Category 3 "major" hurricane with peak winds of 115 mph, the National Hurricane Center said. A hurricane warning was in effect for the central Bahamas.
It was forecast to turn northward, parallel the Southeast coast then make a Sandy-like jog to the west, with its center near the Chesapeake Bay Monday night. The hurricane center said the Wednesday forecast posed "an increased threat to the mid-Atlantic states."
The predictions Wednesday had officials on both sides of the Delaware starting to prepare for an impending possible atmospheric siege.
"We will be oiling up the chainsaws, and we will make sure our trucks are ready to roll, so if we are in the eye of the storm, we will be well prepared," said Dan Keashen, spokesman for Camden County.
No major hurricane -- one with top winds of at least 111 mph -- has made landfall in the United States in 10 years, a record run of tranquillity. Sandy technically was not a hurricane when it reached New Jersey.
Joaquin aside, the meteorological appetizer this week could engorge rivers and streams all over the region, the Weather Service said, adding that the region is in for a "very wet and wild couple of days."
More than 1.5 inches of rain fell Tuesday night and Wednesday. An additional four inches was possible through Friday, with more Saturday as the region remains stuck under a juicy air mass.
The weather service has issued a coastal flood warning in effect until 6 a.m. Friday for coastal Delaware and Cumberland, Cape May and Atlantic Counties in South Jersey. A coastal flood advisory is in effect until 8 p.m. Thursday for the remainder of the Jersey Shore and on the Delaware River up to Trenton. After that, the chance of coastal flooding increases and the weather service has issued a coastal flood watch until 5 p.m. Sunday.
Should Joaquin move north and jog westward, conditions likely would worsen late in the weekend into Monday. And this time around, the National Hurricane Center will be issuing advisories even if the storm should lose its tropical characteristics, spokesman Dennis Feltgen said.
In 2012, when Sandy became "post-tropical" just before landfall, the Hurricane Center stopped issuing advisories and deferred to local forecast offices, causing confusion among some emergency planners.
On Wednesday, Public Service Gas & Electric, Atlantic City Electric and Peco Energy said they were ready to beef up staffing. Utility customers also should be preparing, making sure cellphones are charged, flashlights are working, and bottled water supplies are plentiful in case the power goes out, Peco spokesman Ben Armstrong said.
Adding to any power-outage threat would be the fact that tree branches still have leaves, and thus any that fall would be heavier. Plus, days of rain could saturate roots, making trees easier to topple in gusty winds.
Richard D. Flinn Jr., Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency director, advised residents to make sure outdoor furniture and fixtures are secured.
The deluges likely will have one positive effect.
Last week, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection declared a drought watch for about 40 percent of the state from Ocean County north, asking residents to conserve water voluntarily.
Some of those same areas now are under a flood watch.
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