Even with meteorological spring in the rearview mirror, a major winter-like storm will pack significant weather headaches from the nation’s midsection to the East Coast through the middle of the week.
A potent area of low pressure will scoot from Kansas this morning to the Great Lakes and eastern Canada by Wednesday night and Thursday. This path will lead to heavy, wind-whipped snow, even blizzard conditions along its northern fringe, to soaking rain and the potential for a multi-day storm outbreak ahead of the storm’s cold front.
Tornado Watches extend from eastern Texas into southern Arkansas and northern and central Louisiana. Cities such as Pine Bluff and El Dorado, Ark., Monroe, Shreveport, and Alexandria, La., and Lufkin, Texas, are included.
A line of intense thunderstorms with a history of 50 to 65-mph gusts is racing eastward across southeastern Texas, northwestern Louisiana, and far southwestern Arkansas this morning. This line will careen east through Wednesday morning, covering Tennessee and Mississippi to Georgia and the western Carolinas. Even a few dangerous thunderstorms may develop ahead of the initial line this afternoon into tonight, especially across eastern Louisiana, Mississippi, and southern Alabama.
The government’s Storm Prediction Center has a large Enhanced Risk covering eastern Texas to the Louisiana to western Florida Gulf Coast. This includes Shreveport, Alexandria, and New Orleans, La., Jackson, Miss., and Mobile and Dothan, Ala.
A few tornadoes, which could be intense, and isolated damaging wind gusts up to 75 mph will be the primary risks, although instances of large hail up to golf ball size cannot be ruled out.
The storm’s severe tentacles will reach the Eastern Seaboard on Wednesday. Heavy rain and an accelerating line of dangerous weather will rumble east of Interstates 81 and 95 in the Mid-Atlantic to Carolinas and northern Florida between morning and evening. Already, the Storm Prediction Center has issued an Enhanced Risk for possible significant severe storm activity from far southern Virginia to the eastern Carolinas.
Virginia Beach, Va., Raleigh and Wilmington, N.C., and Charleston, S.C., are included in this severe weather danger zone.
Pittsburgh to Baltimore, Washington, D.C., and Roanoke, Va., to Jacksonville, Fla., could also have a dangerous storm encounter as well.
Meanwhile, the storm’s cold side will produce heavy snow and blizzard conditions across parts of the central and northern Plains to the Upper Mississippi Valley and western Great Lakes through Wednesday night or early Thursday morning. Snow will pile up, particularly across western and north-central Nebraska, and in a corridor from western Iowa to the southern shores of Lake Superior in Michigan. Storm totals ranging from 4 inches to locally 20 inches are forecast. Gusts peaking at 45 to 65 mph will likely lead to whiteout or blizzard conditions during this time. These gusts could also cause tree and powerline damage, as well as result in life-threatening travel.
Blizzard Warnings, as well as Winter Storm Warnings and Winter Weather Advisories remain in effect from parts of western and central Nebraska, as well as far northeastern Kansas to southern Minnesota, western Wisconsin, and northern Michigan. This includes the Twin Cities, Des Moines, Iowa, Lawrence and Topeka, Kan., Marquette, Mich., and Eau Claire, Wis.
