Residents in Midwest, central Plains on alert for severe thunderstorms through midweek

A series of storm systems will renew the risk for violent storms in the central Plains and Midwest through midweek.

As has been the case over the past few days, a large dome of high pressure will maintain its position across the southern Plains and Four Corners region this week.

While this high has brought persistently hot weather to these regions, quick-moving disturbances have been zipping from west to east along the northern periphery of this heat dome.

A boundary separating the heat and humidity to the south from cooler air settling into the northern Plains and Upper Midwest will serve as the train tracks along which these disturbances will travel through Wednesday.

The first of these disturbances triggered explosive thunderstorm development across North Dakota and western Iowa on Monday night, with multiple incidents of hail and damaging wind gusts being reported.

“The storms in Iowa evolved into a powerful squall line Tuesday morning, with very strong wind gusts and heavy rainfall the primary threats,” AccuWeather Meteorologist Brett Rathbun said.

The Tuesday morning commute in southeastern Iowa and west-central Illinois and northeastern Missouri was difficult to even dangerous as violent crosswinds and blinding downpours rolled through.

A gust to 70 mph occurred in New London, Iowa, during Tuesday morning's storms. Winds were strong enough to topple multiple 18-wheel trucks on Interstate 80 near Case, Iowa, early Tuesday.

As the storms rolled through Springfield, Illinois, numerous trees were blown down on the west side of the city.

The storms rolled through the Chicago area with drenching downpours and locally gusty winds during lunchtime.

"On a positive note, the complex of thunderstorms that rolled through Iowa hit an important corn crop area with drenching rain," according to AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Jason Nicholls.

Rainfall was below average over much of Iowa during the first three weeks of August.

"This is the second big rain in three days and should help to fill out the kernels of corn growing in in the region," Nichols said.

Meanwhile, a separate complex of storms blasted across east-central Minnesota and northwestern Wisconsin during the Tuesday morning and midday hours.

Gusts near 50 mph with heavy rain lashed the Minneapolis area during the late morning hours.

More storms erupted over western Nebraska on Tuesday night, unleashing extensive wind damage.

As the boundary sags farther south on Wednesday, yet another round of severe weather is in store for the Central states.

Multiple lines of storms are likely to erupt in Kansas and Missouri later Wednesday afternoon and then race eastward during the overnight hours, threatening to produce more property and home damage in the mid-Mississippi Valley.

The storms can also produce life-threatening flash flooding.

Unfortunately, the active weather pattern may continue right into the weekend as the central Plains and Midwest remain a battle ground between heat and humidity to the south and much cooler, fall-like air across the Great Lakes region and Northeast.

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