Storm will trigger more flooding rain, severe weather across the South
By
Nicole LoBiondo, AccuWeather meteorologist
Updated May 3, 2021 4:15 AM EDT
Heavy rainfall flooded roads and trailers in Ravenden, Arkansas, on April 29. Local officials used kayaks and boats to check for stranded motorists and homeowners.
Following flooding rainfall across much of Texas late last week and into the first part of the weekend, a storm will continue to crawl northeastward, bringing drenching rain and a severe thunderstorm threat across the southern United States to ring in the first week of May.
Flooding downpours have ceased across much of Texas with locations north of Houston and into the northern suburbs of Corpus Christi, Texas, picking up over 8 inches since Thursday morning.
This observation of precipitation image, taken Sunday mid-morning, May 2, 2021, shows rainfall reports since Thursday afternoon, April 29. (NWS/NOAA)
Prior to the abundant rainfall across much of Texas, moderate to exceptional drought conditions were prevalent across the state, according to the United States Drought Monitor.
Over the course of April, cities like Corpus Christi had only picked up about 87% of their average rainfall. As flooding rainfall drenched much of the city on Saturday, the city is now 154% above their average rainfall. This is also true in Houston where they only had 77% of their average rainfall in April, but including Saturday, the city is now 111% over average.
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As the slow-moving storm crawls northeastward, heavy rain and severe thunderstorms expanded northeastward across the South.
By Sunday evening, a tornado was reported in Madison County, Louisiana, as it crossed Highway 65, according to the National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center. By 7 p.m. CDT, more tornado reports in Yazoo and Holmes counties in Mississippi began to roll in.
Shortly before 10 p.m. CDT, a tornado emergency was issued for Tupelo, Mississippi, as a confirmed large and dangerous tornado charged toward the town. Extensive damage has been reported in the metro area.
The severe weather was accompanied by torrential downpours, something this area in particular does not need more of.
For example, Jackson, Mississippi, has reported over 8 inches of rainfall since April 1. Normally during the month of April, the city receives 5 inches. Likewise in Shreveport, Louisiana, picked up over 5 inches, while normally they report 4 inches throughout April.
Farther south, New Orleans reported over a foot of rainfall over the month of April, while normally they report just shy of 5 inches.
Forecasters expect the deluge to continue as a series of storms tracks through the eastern-half of the nation early this week. These storms will bring rounds of wet weather to the Central and Eastern states and another round of flooding rainfall and severe weather to the southern Plains and the Gulf Coast states through Tuesday.
One of these storms will swirl over the Great Lakes region Monday; meanwhile, another storm ejects out of the Rockies and into the southern Plains.
By late Monday into Monday night, severe weather is expected to set up from eastern Oklahoma into southern Missouri and extending into the lower Ohio River Valley as warm, moist air surges north from the Gulf of Mexico. These severe thunderstorms are expected to bring large hail, intense lightning, flash flooding and damaging wind gusts, with an AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 80 mph.
Conditions could be conducive in some locations late Monday through Monday night in the central Plains, making it possible for an isolated tornado or two.
Cities like Little Rock, Arkansas, St. Louis and Louisville, Kentucky, are anticipated to be in the path of severe weather.
The unsettled weather pattern will persist into Tuesday across much of the eastern U.S., with the risk of severe weather expected to shift eastward with the primary threat for damaging thunderstorms extending from the Gulf Coast to the central Appalachians.
"A surge of very humid air expanding northward through the Gulf states will collide with a storm moving up along a front from east Texas to the Ohio Valley and the result will be an outbreak of thunderstorms that will likely linger well into Tuesday night," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Brett Anderson explained.
Storms may turn severe, especially during the afternoon and evening hours with hail, flooding downpours and damaging, straight-line wind gusts with an AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 75 mph.
"There will also be pockets of flash flooding, especially in low-lying and poor drainage areas, but fortunately the storms will be moving along at a decent clip, which will limit the duration of intense rainfall for most areas," Anderson continued.
Wet weather could continue along the Gulf Coast as the middle of the week comes around. A cold front extending from a storm moving through the Northeast could keep showers and thunderstorms around in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. The flood threat will continue across the region, especially where heavy downpours set up.
Dry conditions may return to the South at the end of the week as high pressure is expected to move into the region, lowering humidity levels and dropping daytime high temperatures.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier, Spectrum, FuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios.
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News / Severe Weather
Storm will trigger more flooding rain, severe weather across the South
By Nicole LoBiondo, AccuWeather meteorologist
Updated May 3, 2021 4:15 AM EDT
Heavy rainfall flooded roads and trailers in Ravenden, Arkansas, on April 29. Local officials used kayaks and boats to check for stranded motorists and homeowners.
Following flooding rainfall across much of Texas late last week and into the first part of the weekend, a storm will continue to crawl northeastward, bringing drenching rain and a severe thunderstorm threat across the southern United States to ring in the first week of May.
Flooding downpours have ceased across much of Texas with locations north of Houston and into the northern suburbs of Corpus Christi, Texas, picking up over 8 inches since Thursday morning.
This observation of precipitation image, taken Sunday mid-morning, May 2, 2021, shows rainfall reports since Thursday afternoon, April 29. (NWS/NOAA)
Prior to the abundant rainfall across much of Texas, moderate to exceptional drought conditions were prevalent across the state, according to the United States Drought Monitor.
Over the course of April, cities like Corpus Christi had only picked up about 87% of their average rainfall. As flooding rainfall drenched much of the city on Saturday, the city is now 154% above their average rainfall. This is also true in Houston where they only had 77% of their average rainfall in April, but including Saturday, the city is now 111% over average.
CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP
As the slow-moving storm crawls northeastward, heavy rain and severe thunderstorms expanded northeastward across the South.
By Sunday evening, a tornado was reported in Madison County, Louisiana, as it crossed Highway 65, according to the National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center. By 7 p.m. CDT, more tornado reports in Yazoo and Holmes counties in Mississippi began to roll in.
Shortly before 10 p.m. CDT, a tornado emergency was issued for Tupelo, Mississippi, as a confirmed large and dangerous tornado charged toward the town. Extensive damage has been reported in the metro area.
The severe weather was accompanied by torrential downpours, something this area in particular does not need more of.
For example, Jackson, Mississippi, has reported over 8 inches of rainfall since April 1. Normally during the month of April, the city receives 5 inches. Likewise in Shreveport, Louisiana, picked up over 5 inches, while normally they report 4 inches throughout April.
Farther south, New Orleans reported over a foot of rainfall over the month of April, while normally they report just shy of 5 inches.
Forecasters expect the deluge to continue as a series of storms tracks through the eastern-half of the nation early this week. These storms will bring rounds of wet weather to the Central and Eastern states and another round of flooding rainfall and severe weather to the southern Plains and the Gulf Coast states through Tuesday.
One of these storms will swirl over the Great Lakes region Monday; meanwhile, another storm ejects out of the Rockies and into the southern Plains.
By late Monday into Monday night, severe weather is expected to set up from eastern Oklahoma into southern Missouri and extending into the lower Ohio River Valley as warm, moist air surges north from the Gulf of Mexico. These severe thunderstorms are expected to bring large hail, intense lightning, flash flooding and damaging wind gusts, with an AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 80 mph.
Conditions could be conducive in some locations late Monday through Monday night in the central Plains, making it possible for an isolated tornado or two.
Cities like Little Rock, Arkansas, St. Louis and Louisville, Kentucky, are anticipated to be in the path of severe weather.
Related:
The unsettled weather pattern will persist into Tuesday across much of the eastern U.S., with the risk of severe weather expected to shift eastward with the primary threat for damaging thunderstorms extending from the Gulf Coast to the central Appalachians.
"A surge of very humid air expanding northward through the Gulf states will collide with a storm moving up along a front from east Texas to the Ohio Valley and the result will be an outbreak of thunderstorms that will likely linger well into Tuesday night," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Brett Anderson explained.
Storms may turn severe, especially during the afternoon and evening hours with hail, flooding downpours and damaging, straight-line wind gusts with an AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 75 mph.
"There will also be pockets of flash flooding, especially in low-lying and poor drainage areas, but fortunately the storms will be moving along at a decent clip, which will limit the duration of intense rainfall for most areas," Anderson continued.
Wet weather could continue along the Gulf Coast as the middle of the week comes around. A cold front extending from a storm moving through the Northeast could keep showers and thunderstorms around in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. The flood threat will continue across the region, especially where heavy downpours set up.
Dry conditions may return to the South at the end of the week as high pressure is expected to move into the region, lowering humidity levels and dropping daytime high temperatures.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier, Spectrum, FuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios.
Report a Typo