AccuWeather forecasters say that the threat of severe storms capable of generating damaging winds, hail, downpours and even isolated tornadoes will linger into the second half of the week for locations from the Mississippi Valley to the East Coast.
The storms that develop this week will stem from one main piece of energy charging across the country. This developing storm will be centered across the Midwest Tuesday, with its associated cold front trailing southward across Texas. As moisture surges northward from the Gulf of Mexico and clashes with the dry, colder air reigning over the northern Plains, it will spark rounds of strong to severe thunderstorms through Thursday.
On Wednesday, the storm’s center will push into Canada, and specifically southwest Ontario, and continue to spread a swath of heavy snow across the region. The cold front will span from the Great Lakes to far eastern Texas and cause severe storms to erupt as it pushes eastward through the overnight hours of early Wednesday.
There can be some risk for severe weather across 16 states spanning from eastern Texas to western New York Wednesday. However, AccuWeather meteorologists have issued “moderate” and “high” risk areas for severe thunderstorms in Michigan, Indiana, Ohio and portions of southeastern Ontario. In particular, central Michigan, northern Indiana and far northwestern Ohio will face the greatest risk of severe weather Wednesday and through Wednesday night.
As thunderstorms develop Wednesday, they can bring hailstones and damaging wind gusts ranging from 60-70 mph (100-115 km (377315.00 feet)/h). In the strongest storms, winds could reach as high as an AccuWeather Local StormMax
of 80 mph (130 km (426530.00 feet)/h). Even isolated tornadoes will not be out of the question as the front pushes eastward.
In central Michigan and northern Indiana, the timing of the worst storms is likely to fall between the late afternoon and evening hours. Chicago, Detroit and Cleveland residents should closely monitor for storm updates and ensure they can receive alerts on their mobile devices. Additionally, it is essential to keep devices charged in case power outages occur due to gusty winds and thunderstorms.
A heavy thunderstorm can develop across western New York and northwestern Pennsylvania during the daytime Wednesday. There will be chances for additional heavy showers and storms to develop during the overnight hours of Thursday for cities such as Buffalo, New York, and Erie, Pennsylvania.
Clusters of potent thunderstorms can develop along the front throughout the Mississippi Valley, bringing a swath of gusty winds as they pass over the region. The southern flank of the cold front is likely to track very slowly as it transitions eastward, meaning that locations from Memphis, Tennessee, to Louisville, Kentucky, face the risk of thunderstorms popping up throughout the daytime and first half of the overnight period.
As this frontal boundary gradually realigns across the southern United States Wednesday into Thursday, a setup for frequent downpours will take shape through the last half of the week. Thursday will also bring some risk of hail, downpours and damaging wind gusts as energy shifts eastward to the southern flank of the Interstate 95 corridor and the Carolinas.
Wind gusts are expected to range between 50-60 mph Thursday as the front pushes to the coast. The strongest thunderstorms that can develop Thursday could potentially bring damaging wind gusts of up to an AccuWeather Local StormMax of 70 mph.
On Thursday, thunderstorms can produce hail and downpours in cities such as Augusta, Georgia, and Charlotte, North Carolina. Even locations just to the northeast into eastern Virginia and southern New Jersey can see strong to severe storms develop through the evening hours.
“Instability will be present Thursday afternoon for storms that ignite northwest of Raleigh, North Carolina, over the mountains and the Piedmont. Some of these storms can be capable of a heavy, gusty downpour or two, perhaps even some hail, which can linger into Raleigh and locations just to the east into the evening and overnight hours,” explained AccuWeather Meteorologist Adam Sadvary.
However, the general consensus among AccuWeather meteorologists is that the overall threat of severe weather will lessen by late this week as the storm’s energy dissipates. As the frontal boundary stalls across the Southern states, the primary threat will transition to repeated downpours that could bring the risk of flash flooding from Texas to parts of the Tennessee Valley, which could result in a soggy start to the Easter weekend for many.
Produced in association with AccuWeather
