By Meagan Pollnow
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Sporadic rain slowed but did not shut down the city's main weekend events - downtown's Taste of Cincinnati and the Mobile Skate Park Series at Sawyer Point.

Rain is again in the forecast today as clouds and sunshine are expected to give way to a stray thunderstorm.

The wet weather also has caused the Ohio River to rise to about seven feet below the area's flood stage of 52 feet. The river level was 45.5 feet early Sunday and was forecast to dip to 45.1 feet by Tuesday. The normal level is 25.4 feet.

High water, strong currents and debris washed into the river also wiped out the traditional start of the recreational boating season over the holiday weekend.

Unlike Saturday when large crowds packed Taste, Neal Craig found himself without any customers at his beer booth about 4 p.m. Sunday.

"Business is extremely slow today," he said. "This time yesterday we were selling so fast we couldn't keep up with the line of customers."

"The real benchmark is how fast the rain stops."

The rain did stop for a few hours, and more people flocked to the event.

Dawn Jones came to Taste from Oklahoma and said she'd been there since morning when it was raining.

"The weather hasn't affected us at all," Jones said. "It's great here."

Some booths, however, noticed little or no change in business because of the rain.

"The rain doesn't keep them away," said Nick LaRosa, who was taking orders at LaRosa's Pizzeria booth.

"I've been doing this for 15 years, and I can't remember when it hasn't rained at least one day here, but people still come to enjoy the Taste," he added.

At the Mobile Skate Park series, fans came and went with the rain.

"It was pretty crowded when we came," said Mark Giesting, who was with his son, Austin. "When the rain came, we went home for a little while and then came back."

Bryan Wright, who helped organize the skate park series, said other fans have been doing the same thing.

"The fans have been great. They just keep coming back as soon as the rain lets up."

Brian Russell, manning a Hawaiian ice stand at Sawyer Point, said he noticed fewer people at Sunday's event.

"It was so wet, I don't think a lot of people came down," he said.

Wright acknowledged attendance was lower than usual, and event coordinators moved the amateur skateboarding competition to nearby Ollie's Indoor Skate Park.

In Kentucky the weather was more severe as heavy storms and harsh winds moved across much of the state Sunday afternoon. There was a report of funnel clouds around Louisville.

A state emergency dispatcher said one tornado touchdown was reported in Hopkins County. Kentucky State Police at Madisonville said it produced minor damage, such as downed trees and power lines, but no injuries.

The storms moved east through Frankfort and Lexington, but state police in those areas reported no major damage. The weather service issued tornado warnings for Powell and Estill counties in eastern Kentucky Sunday evening.

Wet spring

May's rainfall total stood at 6.18 inches as of Sunday afternoon, more than an inch above the 4.59-inch average for the month, according to meteorologists.

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The Associated Press contributed.