The National Weather Service is warning of hazardous weather this weekend through Wednesday as a tropical storm is expected to bring heavy rain into the area.

Tropical Storm Fay was named Thursday afternoon and is expected to lift northward. The NWS office in Burlington, Vermont, said that in its coverage area, the storm’s heaviest rainfall will be in the Adirondack High Peaks in Essex County, New York, and the southern Green Mountains of Vermont.

The NWS is predicting widespread 1-to-1.5-inch rainfall totals with locally higher amounts of 2 to 2.5 inches.

NWS Meteorologist Nichole Hammond in Burlington said rainfall is the biggest threat during the storm, but flooding is not expected and that there are no driving cautions at this time. It has been dry recently, and water levels are low.

“Antecedent dry conditions and the relatively quick forward motion of the tropical low will likely make most of this rain beneficial,” a statement from the NWS says. “However, this rain will fall in a quick window of time Saturday morning. Depending on rainfall rates, localized road washouts are possible, in addition to smaller creeks and streams reaching bankfull.”

Hammond said there is a 5% to 10% chance of tropical-storm-force winds in this region. Fay is currently producing winds of around 45 miles per hour, which increased in intensity Thursday.

Fay — the sixth named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season — started in the ocean off of North Carolina Thursday and has been moving up the coast into southern New England at a rate of around 7 mph.

The Associated Press, citing Colorado State University hurricane researcher Phil Klotzbach, reported that Fay is the earliest sixth-named storm on record, beating the previous record — Franklin on July 22, 2005.

Fay is expected to drop in intensity as it moves inland next week.