High risk: Severe weather outbreak to impact central, eastern US
This week, an alarming pattern featuring a significant risk for tornadoes, large hail, flash flooding and destructive winds will impact at least 2 dozen states.
Hail piled up in Minnesota and Michigan as strong storms swept through the Upper Midwest on March 28.
Over the upcoming days, a wide swath of the nation will be at risk for robust thunderstorms that will be capable of producing numerous tornadoes, large hailstones and intense wind gusts. Two consecutive storms that will traverse the Plains and portions of the East will spark rounds of severe weather and kick off a notable flood threat as the week goes on.
After severe thunderstorms struck portions of the Ohio and Mississippi Valleys on Sunday, AccuWeather severe weather experts are sounding the alarm bells for another high risk to develop in an eerily similar corridor.
Severe weather Sunday night
A line of strong thunderstorms formed Sunday afternoon and progressed eastward through Sunday night. Severe weather extended from northeastern Texas and Louisiana to Michigan and western Ohio. Hail and damaging winds were reported across the region with tornado reports in Missouri, Tennessee and Michigan.
There were more than 400 reports of severe weather on Sunday and Sunday night, ranging from large hail and high winds to several tornadoes.
Severe storms to stretch from New England to Gulf coast Monday
The same storm to produce the severe weather risk on Sunday will continue to plague residents farther east from Monday to Monday night.
A squall line of thunderstorms is expected to continue to plow eastward into Monday midday across the Interstate 10 and 20 corridors of the Southeast states, forecasters say.
While this initial line of storms may wane during the afternoon hours as it moves along, a separate line may develop farther to the north later in the day and advance across Virginia and the Carolinas.
Cities like Richmond, Virginia, Raleigh, North Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina, down to Jacksonville, Florida, are forecast to face intense storms on Monday as the main frontal boundary advances to the coast.
Some storms can be severe at the local level in portions of Maryland, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey, New York and western New England this afternoon and evening.
Next storm to emerge into Plains late Tuesday into Wednesday
A secondary storm will begin to shift out of the Rockies and across the Plains from early to midweek, posing yet another notable threat for damaging storms.
The greatest chance for severe weather will arise later in the day on Tuesday, from the afternoon onward into the night, as the storm gathers energy and becomes more organized across the Central states.
As this zone of low pressure advances northeastward from Nebraska and across the Midwest from Tuesday to Wednesday, a swath of moisture will surge out of the South and fuel storms across the region.
Severe weather outbreak into midweek
Forecasters are warning of another intense round of tornadoes, large hail and destructive wind gusts on Wednesday and Wednesday night, setting up across an uncannily similar region from northeastern Texas to Michigan.
"Wednesday could end up being a carbon copy of Sunday, in terms of storm position and expected intensity. Another high risk zone is in the forecast from northeastern Arkansas to western Kentucky and southern Indiana," warned AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Bill Deger.
Especially since this second round of severe weather on Wednesday is projected to impact some of the same cities that faced powerful thunderstorms through Sunday night, those trying to recover from storm damage can be particularly vulnerable to impacts around midweek.
"The harsh nature of the storms expected to develop across the Mississippi River basin around midweek will pose an additional threat to any residents who are exposed to destruction a few days prior. While there will be a brief lull in activity on Monday and Tuesday for some areas to allow for cleanup and recovery, another quick-hitting blow can exacerbate impacts and recovery time," highlighted AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Tyler Roys.
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Locations like Paducah, Kentucky, for example, will face multiple rounds of hazards over the upcoming days, ranging from flash flooding and tornadoes to hailstones that can reach diameters larger than a ping-pong ball.
Flash flood threat to last into late week
Even following the destructive storms anticipated through midweek, forecasters also warn that the pattern that will persist into the upcoming weekend will consist of rounds of heavy rain, if not additional thunderstorms.
"If residents are in an area not directly impacted by damaging wind gusts, hail or tornadoes into midweek, they are likely going to encounter flash flooding this week," noted Roys.
Rising creeks and streams can quickly stir up trouble for those that reside in low-lying areas, especially given the heavy rainfall that occurred back in February.
Similar to the zone of heaviest rainfall expected this week, from the fatal Kentucky flooding that occurred in mid-February also encompassed much of western and central areas of the state, extending into northwest Tennessee. Another round of intense and potentially historic rainfall to similar areas could result in extended road closures and power outages.
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