Jul 28, 2014 3 min read

WAYNESBURG – The National Weather Service was predicting only a slight chance of rain in Waynesburg today and that was enough for residents to be confident.

They were confident it would rain in Waynesburg because it always rains in Waynesburg July 29. That’s the idea behind the town’s most famous holiday, Rain Day, which will be celebrated with food, entertainment and activities this afternoon along the town’s main thoroughfare.

“It will rain,” Waynesburg Mayor Duncan Berryman said Monday afternoon in a forceful tone indicating this was something not open to doubt.

When told about a forecast that favored sunny skies, Berryman responded: “The weatherman has been wrong before … There will be scattered showers and I’m sure one of those showers is going to roll through sometime tomorrow.”

Berryman has history on his side. According to Rain Day records, it has rained for 113 of the last 140 years in the borough July 29.

The forecast from the National Weather Service, however, was not as optimistic about the likelihood of rain, calling for only a 10 to 20 percent chance today.

“The chances are it will not rain, but there is a chance it will,” said Brad Rehak, meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Pittsburgh. A slight chance, he said, “is better than no chance at all.”

“They should have had Rain Day today,” Rehak suggested. It was raining in Waynesburg at the time Rehak made that comment. But it also was Monday, July 28, not Rain Day.

Berryman predicted the rain would fall just after midnight, leaving the day open for the activities that will be part of this year’s Rain Day celebration. “We’ll get it done and over with and move on to the festivities,” he said.

He was confident enough in the record of successful Rain Days that he earlier made the traditional hat bet with Patricia Heaton, who starred as Debra Barone on the CBS television series “Everybody Loves Raymond.”

Berryman said he was not sure what kind of hat he will win from Heaton. “But whatever she happens to send, we’ll be proud to put on display,” he said.

Waynesburg Borough police were to be on the lookout at midnight last night for any signs of rain. They have taken on the role of confirming rainfall early in the morning or late at night.

“I told the midnight patrolmen to watch their windshields,” police Chief Rob Toth said Monday. Once it rains, he said, he will notify the mayor.

Toth, too, was confident it would rain. It was raining Monday afternoon and at the time it looked as though it would continue through the evening. “All we need is a few drops after midnight,” Toth said.

Rain or no rain, the celebration will include a full day of activities and entertainment. The street festival, organized by the Waynesburg Special Events Commission, will take place on High Street, which will be blocked to traffic.

Headlining the entertainment will be Simon Sez, which will take the Rain Day stage at 7:30 p.m. The band plays 1980s-style music.