Plains, Mississippi Valley brace for multiple days of severe storms
Rounds of severe thunderstorms will focus on the central United States through the week, with damaging winds, hail, a few tornadoes and a growing threat of flash flooding.
Golf ball-sized hail hammered parts of Denver as severe thunderstorms brought intense rain and flooding on June 1.
Each day this week will bring showers, thunderstorms and severe weather to portions of the Plains and Mississippi Valley, raising the potential for localized flash flooding.
Some of the strongest storms could cause significant damage to neighborhoods and cropland, with powerful wind gusts and large hail. Clusters of severe thunderstorms may also trigger lengthy power outages in heavily wooded communities.
Thursday's severe threat
On Thursday, the severe weather threat will focus across the High Plains from central and southeastern Montana to southern Minnesota and southward into northeastern Colorado.
As on many days this week, the greatest threat to towns, cities, farms and ranches will be damaging hail and strong winds. The AccuWeather Local StormMax™ is 85 mph.
Friday severe
Severe storms on Friday are most likely to shift farther east, returning to portions of the Mississippi Valley and farther south over the Plains.
Severe storm risk to continue this weekend
Once again the potential for severe weather will reset farther to the west over the Plains later on Saturday. Some storms capable of producing damaging hail and wind will extend from eastern Montana to western North Dakota and into Saskatchewan.
As cool air begins to slice into very warm and progressively more humid air in the Northeast, thunderstorms will form, and some will become severe around parts of the Great Lakes Saturday afternoon and evening.
On Sunday, the risk of severe storms will extend from Kentucky to southern Pennsylvania. That zone will include the heavily populated areas of Baltimore and Washington, D.C.
The main threats from the storms in the Northeast on Saturday and Sunday will be from damaging hail and high winds as well as downpours that can slow travel on the highways.
Ongoing, expanding flash flood risk zone
The rounds of thunderstorms will lead to a growing flood threat, with torrential downpours shifting later this week and into the weekend.
The greatest risk of flash flooding will extend over West Texas and central and eastern New Mexico, then shift slowly eastward toward the Mississippi Valley later in the week.
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