Severe storms with damaging winds to focus on central US
Severe thunderstorms will extend across southern parts of the Plains through late week with hail, potentially damaging wind gusts and flash flooding.
Wednesday will be another warm day in the Northeast and mid-Atlantic with strong storms possible; however, a change is on the way later in the week. Bernie Rayno breaks down what to expect.
Severe thunderstorms packing damaging wind gusts, hail and localized flash flooding will stretch across southern portions of the Plains through late week. The threat of dangerous storms will be lower than the outbreak from Sunday into Monday, but they could still damage property and crops and result in regional power outages.
AccuWeather’s severe weather classification is impact-driven and differs from the Storm Prediction Center’s system, with a focus on clarity for the general public.
Below is a day-by-day breakdown of the severe weather threat zones through Friday.
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Thursday
On Thursday, the greatest risk of severe weather will extend from eastern Colorado and New Mexico to Texas, central Arkansas, much of Louisiana and western Mississippi.
The primary threat Thursday will be from flash flooding. A few storms may bring wind gusts of 55-65 mph. The AccuWeather Local StormMax™ wind gust is 75 mph. Hail will also be a threat across eastern Colorado and West Texas.
Friday
The risk of severe weather will be renewed across parts of the Plains Friday, spanning from southeastern Colorado and northeastern New Mexico through western Oklahoma.
The storms in this region will bring hail, downpours and wind gusts of 60-70 mph. The AccuWeather Local StormMax™ wind gust is 85 mph.
Needed rain versus flash flood risk versus outdoor activities
Looking ahead to Memorial Day weekend, thunderstorms may spread from Alabama and Georgia to the Carolinas, where rainfall could help ease areas of severe to exceptional drought — provided the storms do not disrupt outdoor plans. The main corridor of repeated downpours through the weekend is expected to extend from Texas and Louisiana to Kentucky.
Rainfall totals from 1-4 inches may be high enough over a few hours to several days to trigger flash flooding in urban areas and along small streams. Up to 8 inches of rain is possible from southeastern Texas to central Louisiana.
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