AccuWeather.com

By Meghan Evans, Meteorologist

Feb 18, 2012; 4:30 PM ET

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Picture of severe storm from Photos.com.

There is potential for the most violent severe storm outbreak of the season so far to unfold today from southeastern Louisiana to southern Georgia and the Florida Panhandle.

Thunderstorms first fired across the western Gulf Coast from southern and eastern Texas into Louisiana Friday night as a storm system continues to gather strength in the Gulf of Mexico.

The early risk from the developing weather pattern is blinding downpours and the potential for flash flooding. Houston is included in the communities at risk for heavy thunderstorms.

All of the ingredients will come together for a severe storm outbreak today as the storm system pushes across the central Gulf states.

Thunderstorms will rattle Louisiana into portions of southern Mississippi and Alabama through the midday and afternoon hours, gathering into a large cluster. The thunderstorms in the cluster threaten to produce damaging wind gusts greater than 70 mph, large hail and flooding downpours along the Gulf Coast.

Some tornadoes could also spin up in the cluster of storms. There is concern that the tornadoes that touch down within the cluster may be rain-wrapped and difficult or impossible to see.

It is extremely important to heed any severe storm or tornado-related warnings.

Some discrete storms will develop outside of the cluster, and these storms will have the greatest risk at spawning a few large tornadoes.

The severe storms will progress eastward into southern Alabama and the western Florida Panhandle during the evening hours.

New Orleans, Biloxi, Miss., Mobile, Ala., Tallahassee, Fla., are among the cities with the greatest threat for severe storms.

Tonight, southern Georgia and areas farther to the east in the Florida Panhandle are likely to be in the prime risk area.

Any tornadoes that strike might be shrouded by the darkness of night, so it is crucial to keep weather radios on and stay alert of any watches and warnings.

On Sunday, severe thunderstorms will rattle the coastal Carolinas and coastal Georgia with some strong storms stretching back into north-central Florida.

North of the severe storms, drenching rain will expand across the Southeast on Saturday and Saturday night, raising flash flooding concerns across the northern portion of the Gulf States, part of Tennessee and the Carolinas.

While flash flooding is a risk, the rain will be beneficial for drought-stricken areas.

A strong jet stream, or a channel of fast winds high in the atmosphere around the altitude where planes fly, will develop over the Gulf states. This will supply abundant energy for severe storms to grow, while humid air from the Gulf of Mexico provides the fuel.

The cluster of storms that will develop over the Deep South is referred to as a mesoscale convective complex by meteorologists. This type of storm cluster can cause hundreds of miles of damage along their paths. Generally, very high winds cause the most widespread damage.