Severe Storms in Store for Large Area of U.S. on Thursday

Posted: January 18, 2023 3:47 pm

Cold Air Moving in Behind Thunderstorms, Bringing Risk of Snow to Interior Northeast

It will be the Midwest, the Southeast, and portions of the Great Lakes under the threat of severe weather on Thursday, just one day after storms roared across the southern Plains and the Mississippi Valley. Those in the path of this weather maker can expect torrential rainfall, high winds, and isolated tornado activity. Here are the details that you need to know.

Warm and Moist Air Provide Fuel for Thunderstorms

This line of severe weather will push much farther north than is typical for this time of the year. This will be blamed on the presence of unseasonably warm and moist air positioned over the Great Lakes and interior Northeast. For instance, rather than seeing snow and ice as is normal for January, the impact area may be under the gun for thunderstorms. This could potentially catch some people off guard.

The storms will fire up as a result of a potent system that is moving through the southern Great Lakes after it brought snow to the Rockies and the Upper Midwest on Tuesday and Wednesday. The cold front associated with this system will move down to the Gulf Coast, providing a path of energy for thunderstorm development on Thursday.

Timing of Severe Weather

The storm cells will stretch from the northern Gulf Coast up through the Tennessee Valley to start the day Thursday. By the time the sun sets that day, the storms may be firing up as far east as Georgia and into the Carolinas.

It will be a stormy day that holds on in portions of the Ohio Valley and the southern fringe of the Great Lakes. The storms will first punish the area in the morning hours, delivering heavy rainfall. After a brief break, more severe weather is expected to move in later in the afternoon. These late day storms are likely to be more intense than the morning event.

The afternoon severe weather will first develop across eastern Indiana or western Ohio before tracking eastward into southern Michigan and into West Virginia and the western edge of Pennsylvania. Forecasters are warning that this line of storms will come with heavy downpours, the threat of minor flash flooding, and strong winds.

For example, winds may reach over 50 mph, whipping around the rain that will fall in tandem. This pairing could bring down power lines and tree limbs across the impacted region. Flooding impacts should be relatively minor because the storms are predicted to move through at a fast clip rather than stall out.

You also cannot rule out an isolated tornado within these storm cells. The most likely zone for this potential of tornado activity is in Ohio, the center of the storm system.

The impacts of this weather maker could be widespread. Major cities that are forecast to see the heavy rains and damaging winds include Atlanta, Pittsburgh, and Birmingham. Portions of interstates 20, 75, and 76 may be dealing with reduced visibility as a result of the rain and gusty winds.

The northern edges of the storm system will encompass the Lower Peninsula of Michigan and the western half of New York state.

Cold Air to Follow Severe Weather

A rush of cold air more typical of the winter season will come in behind the line of storms. This will raise the chances of lake effect snow churning up downwind of the Great Lakes beginning late Thursday and lasting through Friday.

The drop in temperatures will translate to the return of wintry precipitation to the interior Northeast to end the week. Parts of northern Pennsylvania, upstate New York, and some areas of Connecticut and Massachusetts may be facing an icy morning commute on Friday.

The system will then create a good chance of snow for much of New England on Friday. The exact impact zone of this winter weather will become more clear in the next 24 hours.

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