WAKEFIELD—The forecasted one inch of rain expected to fall in Western Tidewater from a Nor’easter has been downgraded to about one-quarter of an inch.

For Franklin Fire and Rescue Chief Vince Holt, the original forecast as well as Tuesday’s doesn’t create concerns for the flooding on the Blackwater River after last week’s Hurricane Sandy dumped four inches of rain.

“Right now the river is at 8.4 feet, and it crested from the last event and is on its way down,” Holt said.

The river on Saturday crested at 10.4 feet; flood stage is 12 feet.

Rain is expected to begin early Wednesday morning and continue throughout the day, said Lyle Alexander, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Wakefield. He expects at 60 percent chance of rain with winds at 15 to 20 mph and gusts of up to 35 mph.

A high of 50 degrees is forecast for Wednesday with a low of 36 a night. There is no chance of snow, Alexander said.

A Nor’easter is a storm that develops off the East Coast with strong winds from the north.

“This storm will be a little further out to sea than expected, but will still have strong winds,” he said.

Assuming the temperatures would drop to 33 or 34 at night, there could be some freezing on bridges, Alexander noted.