Rounds of storms to threaten Midwest, Appalachians with flash flooding, damaging winds
A parade of thunderstorms will roll across central and eastern U.S. through this week bringing the risk for severe weather and flash flooding.
From Florida to New York, people were shocked (pun intended) by dramatic flashes of lightning and deafening claps of thunder.
A stormy stretch will take hold across portions of the central and eastern United States, AccuWeather meteorologists warn, raising the risk for severe weather this week.
Multiple complexes of thunderstorms are expected to take shape across the Plains and Midwest before moving into the Ohio Valley and Appalachians. Some areas could receive bouts of heavy rain numerous times over multiple days, increasing the risk for flash flooding.
On Sunday, severe thunderstorms rumbled across the Midwest, including the Chicago metro area, producing hail and damaging winds. Two tornadoes were also reported in northern Illinois.
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Repeated storms to heighten flash flooding risk across the Ohio Valley, Appalachians
The same complexes of thunderstorms that drove the risk for severe weather in the Plains and Midwest over the weekend will continue eastward early this week, bringing the threat to parts of the Ohio Valley and mid-Atlantic.
A broad corridor of severe thunderstorms is expected to extend from northeastern Illinois to central Pennsylvania and northern Virginia Monday and Monday night as thunderstorm complexes move across the region. Flash flooding, isolated tornadoes and damaging wind gusts of 65-75 mph will be the primary hazards. A moderate risk of severe storms exists from northwestern Indiana into Ohio and far southwestern Pennsylvania.
The storms could also cause significant disruptions during the morning and evening commutes, including around Chicago, Detroit and Pittsburgh.
A separate corridor of severe storms can also occur across portions of the Plains Monday afternoon and night and across portions of the Dakotas and Nebraska into southern Minnesota and western Iowa. Hail, flooding downpours and damaging wind gusts can occur in any storm that turns severe.
A similar zone spanning from Illinois to Virginia will be at risk once again for severe storms Tuesday and Tuesday night. Once again, flash flooding and damaging wind gusts will be the main hazards with any severe storms.
Similar to Monday, another corridor of severe storms can occur across northern portions of the Plains Tuesday afternoon into Tuesday night, focusing on South Dakota and portions of Nebraska, Iowa and Minnesota. Storms can once again bring flooding downpours, hail and damaging wind gusts. A similar zone, shifted a bit farther south, will then take shape again on Wednesday in the Plains, with the same hazards at risk.
These repeated rounds of rain and thunderstorms will increase the risk of flooding across the Ohio Valley and Appalachians. The greatest risk of flash flooding will be across southern Ohio, eastern Kentucky, West Virginia, and southwestern Pennsylvania, where terrain will coincide with torrential rainfall. Within the greatest-risk area, several inches of rainfall can occur from Monday night to Thursday night. The AccuWeather Local StormMax™ is 12 inches.
Heavy rainfall could cause streams and rivers to overflow their banks, wash out roads and lead to significant travel disruptions. Motorists should never attempt to drive through flooded roadways, and residents in flood-prone areas should have multiple ways to receive watches and warnings.
The risk for flash flooding comes after numerous significant flooding events across the Ohio Valley and Appalachians this summer, including on July 21, when torrential rainfall sent creeks to historic levels in West Virginia, washing out bridges and prompting numerous water rescues.
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