Flooding, hail and tornado threat looms for central, southeastern US to end March
A storm forecast by AccuWeather to roll out of the Rockies early next week will likely bring the next significant surge of severe weather for the central and southeastern United States, as well as snow on its cold side.
The final days of March and the first days of April will come with a risk of severe storms in some of the most typical areas for this time of year.
AccuWeather meteorologists are tracking a storm lurking off the Pacific Coast of the United States that can potentially bring the next significant round of severe weather to portions of the Plains and the Mississippi, Tennessee and Ohio valleys next week. Farther north, a blizzard may evolve over the northern Plains.
The storm will spread areas of low-elevation and mountain snow into the West Coast states this weekend. The storm will reorganize as it then pushes inland over the southern Rockies and then onto the southern Plains early next week. The combination of an active jet stream and an injection of warm and humid air from the Gulf of Mexico will energize the storm system and result in an eruption of showers and thunderstorms.
"The orientation of the jet stream and storm track will determine the nature, location and scope of the severe weather for the first part of next week," AccuWeather Lead Long-Range Meteorologist Paul Pastelok said.
The risk of severe storms will first erupt from parts of Texas and Oklahoma to the lower and middle Mississippi Valley from late Sunday to Monday.
The lower and middle Mississippi Valley to parts of the Ohio Valley and interior Southeast states will then be at risk for damaging thunderstorms from Monday to Tuesday. Precise areas for severe weather are subject to change in the coming days. All modes of severe weather are possible, ranging from strong wind gusts and flash flooding to large hail and a few tornadoes.
Thus far this year, the count of tornado reports is running past the historical average by nearly three dozen storms. As of Thursday, March 21, there have been 151 tornado reports versus the historical average of 179.
On the storm's colder, northwestern flank, a period of accumulating snow is expected across the northern and central Plains and Upper Midwest from Saturday night to Monday night.
A broad swath of half a foot of snow or more is expected to fall from eastern portions of Montana to the Arrowhead of Minnesota. Minneapolis could be near the dividing line between 6 inches of snow or more.
An all-out blizzard may unfold across the northern Plains as gusty winds whip around the strengthening storm. Travel will be difficult and dangerous along stretches of interstates 80 and 90.
The snow will overlap some areas that get hit with a fresh accumulation to end the week over the North Central states.
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