LUMBERTON — It’s going to be wet in Robeson County for a while, but how wet depends on the path of Joaquin, an Atlantic storm that is now a hurricane and whose path is uncertain.

Rain forecasts for Robeson County are currently iffy, depending on how far west Joaquin drifts.

Joaquin was upgraded from a tropical storm to a category 1 hurricane this morning — also upping expected rainfall for the East Coast beginning this weekend. The storm at 8 a.m. was located about 245 miles from the central Bahamas, with maximum sustained winds of 75 mph, according to the National Hurricane Center.

The effect that Joaquin will have on the East Coast depends on how far west the storm turns before being carried northward. As the National Weather Service in Wilmington put it on Facebook, “parts of NC are now in the cone of uncertainty.”

“Right now its forecast to stay offshore but we will probably still have some effects from it, mainly in the form of rain, it’s just a question of how much rain,” said Michael Ross, a National Weather Service forecaster in Wilmington.

Ross said earlier models showed the storm dumping as much as 2 inches of rain in and around Robeson County, but that some models are now predicting as much as 4 inches. Currently, the heaviest rainfall as a result of Joaquin is expected in New England, but forecasters are advising residents on the North Carolina coast to be prepared for severe weather.

Regardless of Joaquin’s path, Robeson County residents can expect wet weather the balance of the week.

There is a 60 percent chance of rain today, and an 80 percent chance tonight. The high chance of rain will continue through Thursday night, and drop to 70 percent on Friday. From there, the chance of precipitation decreases gradually, falling to a 30 percent chance on Sunday, although the weekend forecast may be affected by Hurricane Joaquin.

Earlier forecasts had predicted a little sunshine this weekend, but now it looks like soggy Robesonians will have to wait until Monday to dry out.

The gloomy weather has already rained on Robeson County’s parade. Blue Grass on the Black Water, a free concert set for Thursday night in downtown Lumberton, had to be moved inside to the Carolina Civic Center because of the possibility of rain. For more on the event, see a story on page 3A.

For the second week in a row, rain is threatening high school football games that are scheduled for Friday night. Several games had to be rescheduled last week. The Robesonian will publish information as it is available on any football games that are rescheduled.

It could also mess with the annual Robeson Regional Agricultural Fair, which begins its nine-day run Friday.

Local agriculture experts say that so far recent rains have not caused any crop damage.

Joaquin is the third hurricane of the 2015 Atlantic season.