MARIETTA - If you must venture outside today, give yourself extra time to get where you're going. Weather forecasters are predicting heavy rain and thunderstorms throughout the day.

"You are going to want to stay indoors," said Tom Moore, lead meteorologist at The Weather Channel. "This is a large storm system coming out the Gulf. We are expecting two to three inches of rain, but there will also be some embedded thunderstorms."

The rain was expected to begin Tuesday evening and continue through today. Thunderstorms are expected after 7 a.m. Today's temperatures will be in the low 50s.

Winds will also be an issue. By Tuesday afternoon, wind advisories had already been issued for the entire Atlanta area, and gusts of 35 miles per hour are likely, Moore said. That is something Cobb emergency management officials are keeping an eye on, in case of downed trees.

"Considering that we have a lot of trees that were sick from the drought, and the amount of water that we've had in the last few months, we are primed for that possibility more than we would normally be," Moore said.

Rain is something people in Austell may have already had their fill of, but Mayor Joe Jerkins is not expecting major water woes today.

"We can take six or seven inches of rain without flooding, and the creeks are pretty low," Jerkins said. "We shouldn't have any problem."

Flash floods, though, may cause temporary road closures.

Moore said drivers, especially those who commute into Atlanta, should expect delays. The heaviest rain, though, will likely be south of Atlanta, he said.

Jessica Fieux, a forecaster in the Peachtree City office of the National Weather Service, said a flood watch issued Tuesday afternoon included all of Cobb County.

The wet weather should clear out before the Thursday morning rush hour, she said.