A potent winter storm is set to cause major headaches as holiday travel ramps up this weekend. A cold front and two associated areas of low pressure will sweep across the central and Southern United States beginning tonight. This storm system will pack punch with both winter weather and spring like severe thunderstorms.
A considerable threat for damaging wind and tornadoes will evolve in the Southern Mississippi river Valley on Saturday as warm moist air pours into the area ahead of the advancing cold front. The problems will begin early Saturday morning in East/Central Texas, SW Arkansas and NW Louisiana as storms initiate with the threat for damaging wind and an isolated tornado.
Severe weather early Saturday morning.
The threat will then shift East into Saturday afternoon and evening as the cold front and associated low pressure moves out of Texas. A significant threat for damaging wind and several tornadoes will evolve over parts of Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi, Tennessee and Alabama. This will likely be a two headed threat. The first threat will be with any storms that can fire and remain isolated ahead of the cold front. These storms will pose the greatest tornado threat and depending on how things evolve a few strong tornadoes are not out of the question. The second threat will be with a line of storms that forms with the cold front. These storms will pose a significant damaging wind threat and also have isolated weaker tornadoes embedded in the line. The storm prediction center has already placed a moderate risk over portions of the South East. The highest risk area will be in NE Louisiana, Western Mississippi and SE Arkansas.
Moderate risk for tornadoes and damaging wind for Saturday December 21st.
The winter side of this system will also be very problematic and will likely cause delays for holiday travelers. Snow will begin late Friday evening over a large swath of the central plains in Oklahoma, Kansas and Missouri. Freezing rain will be a problem in portions of Iowa, Illinois, Wisconsin and Missouri with a potentially significant ice storm in parts of Oklahoma. Flash flooding will be a major concern in the warmer environment further East. Rivers and streams will swell in portions of Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Missouri and Illinois as heavy rainfall totals will blanket the area. Watches warnings and advisories are already in place in anticipation of major air travel delays and treacherous road conditions. Full list of hazards can be found at this link: http://www.nws.noaa.gov/largemap.php
Watches, warnings and advisories for this coming weekend.
Please stay tuned to local media as this storm evolves in your area. This is not an official forecast and only the personal opinions of Zach Roberts. For official forecasts please tune to the National Weather Service or local media.
Stay safe everyone and take your time if travelling.
Zach Roberts
Latest posts by Zach Roberts (see all)
- The Weather Channels Slow Decline to Irrelevance - January 13, 2014
- Northern Lights Possible Tonight - January 8, 2014
- Historic Snow and Freezing Temperatures Take Hold - January 7, 2014
