Severe weather dangers to target northern tier of central US by midweek
As powerful thunderstorms rolled into Raymore, Missouri on June 21, trees were bucked around by the winds the storm brought with it. Torrential rains were also observed, and the National Weather Services reported that the area might get as much as four inches of rain.
The threat to lives and property from severe thunderstorms will shift focus from the central and southern Plains to the northern tier of the nation's midsection starting around the middle of this week.
After severe weather threatens areas from Texas to Indiana to end the weekend, the risk zone will focus on areas from southern Michigan and western Pennsylvania to northern Georgia on Monday. Texas will also face another bout of locally severe and drenching thunderstorms.
By the middle of the week, a corridor from eastern Montana through the Dakotas and much of the Midwest can face frequent bouts of violent storms.
A northward push in the jet stream will bring about this change in the pattern this week.
"This will help to shift the stormy weather northward into the northern Plains and Upper Midwest, while the central Rockies, central Plains and mid-Mississippi Valley have a drier period," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Jack Boston said.
"Severe thunderstorms are likely to push through these northern areas," he added.
The jet stream's northward bulge will allow plenty of heat and humidity to surge across the central United States to the Canadian border.
These are two necessary ingredients for feisty storms to ignite.
In this type of pattern, thunderstorm complexes tend to ride along the northern rim of the hot, humid air, which is their fuel source.
An organized derecho, or long-lived line of powerful storms that cause extensive wind damage, cannot be ruled out this week, according to Boston.
From late Thursday through Friday night, a derecho left a trail of wind damage along an approximate 1,000-mile-long path from near the Nebraska and Kansas border through South Carolina
The timing and coverage of this week's severe storm threats will become more certain in the coming days.
At this point, people living or planning to travel along a corridor from Bismarck, North Dakota, to Minneapolis; Des Moines, Iowa; Chicago; Green Bay, Wisconsin; and perhaps as far east as Detroit and Cincinnati, should keep a close eye on the forecast and look for additional updates on AccuWeather.com in the coming days.
While the steamy weather will have people flocking to local lakes, pools and streams, it will be important for anyone outdoors to have a way to be notified when severe weather threatens.
Download the free AccuWeather app to receive severe weather alerts for your location as soon as they are issued.
As soon as the sky looks threatening or thunder is heard, seek shelter indoors or in a hard-top vehicle to protect yourself from potentially deadly lightning strikes.
The northward shift of the stormy weather will be good news for those in the central and southern Plains who are weary of storm and flood damage cleanup.
While storms can still occasionally pulse through these areas this week, the risk of widespread severe weather will be much lower than in recent days.
Keep checking back for updates on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
