Here comes the flooding

Forecasters are predicting a flood that  could river that of the mid 1930s along the Mississippi River Valley south of St. Louis.

Also included in the flood danger zone is the Ohio River Valley.

What a beautiful sight!

For the first time in I don't know how long ... the US National Watch and Warning map is free of Severe Thunderstorm and Tornado watches and warnings. YAY!!!!!!!!!

Now we have flooding and extreme fire danger to deal with before more storms over the weekend.

Break from the severe storms

Well the poor southern states will finally catch a break from the historic severe weather outbreak this weekend.

But only for a few days before more storms and severe weather enter the picture toward the end of the weekend.

For now, let's focus on the dry few days and pray for the recovery/search and rescue operations.

This was the worst tornado event since 1974's Super Outbreak on April 3-4.

5,000 severe weather reports and counting!

I was just adding up the severe weather reports so far for the month of April ... over 500 tornadoes and over 5,000 reports of hail and high winds!

Can't wait to see how this all stacks up statistically once the months ends.

Today we are watching for very heavy rain across southern Missouri. Tomorrow a moderate risk of severe storms once again ... this time with a bullseye over Arkansas.

Will April set a record for severe weather?

Wow - what an AMAZING month this has been for severe weather across the United States. It seems like almost every day .. if not every few ... we've seen large outbreaks.

You tube video from St. Louis Airport!

I just can't believe the direct hit that Lambert St. Louis Int'l Airport took today.  It will be amazing to see the first pictures when daylight hits.

Initial reports say the airport will be closed indefinitely. Wow!  That will really take a local toll on the city.

So far this month there have seen several hundred tornadoes and thousands of hail and high wind reports.  I think there have been at least 50 or 60 deaths due to the weather.

Now we will be dealing with some serious flooding issues along the Mississippi, Ohio and Red Rivers.  Here in the Rockies we are dealing with some flooding from the melt of a very deep snowpack.

At least 3 Colorado ski resorts have recorded over 500 inches of snow this year!  One resort still have over 100 inches on the ground!!!

PDS Tornado Watch

A severe weather outbreak is in progress over the southern plains this afternoon - it will last well into the night.

A PDS Tornado Watch has been issued for portions of Oklahoma and Kansas. This means a "particularly dangerous situation" is unfolding.

In other words ... there is a higher than normal confidence in the potential for tornadoes.

Tornado outbreak in Wisconsin tied for worst ever in April

This is pretty amazing ... the huge severe weather outbreak over the past weekend produced 10 tornadoes in Wisconsin ... and that ties it for the largest April outbreak on record.

Click here to read more!

More severe weather is expected on Thursday - this time across the southern and central plains.

Finally some sun in Seattle

Seattle had the most sunshine yesterday that it has seen since February 25!   Can you imagine?

I know some people that live in the Seattle area and they say if you can just get through the rainy season .... which is fall into spring ... the rest of the year is worth it!

Seattle typically has a beautiful late spring and summer ... lush and green with a beautiful setting of mountains and water.

Winter up north, near summer down south

It's the annual battle of the seasons across the nation this weekend with a winter storm sinking slowing south across the northern plains states - meanwhile - warm and humid air over the south will give way to an outbreak of severe weather heading into Sunday and Monday.

Places like Denver, Co are caught in the middle - with a record high of 84 degrees on Saturday giving way to a 50 degree temperature drop by late Sunday along with snow.

Below is a map of the weather threats that will likely make headlines over the next 72 hours.

Mother Nature - Shake it up will ya?

Is it me - or is this weather pattern just becoming too stagnant?

California keeps getting pounded, the northern tier can't lose winter, we're burning up here in the Front Range of the Rockies.....LITERALLY!!   Dozens of fires this month so far - several in the immediate 7-county Denver area.

The south is seeing all the severe weather - what little there has been - and that isn't a bad thing - unless you are a storm chaser.  Although - California has seen some rare storms with a few tornadoes too!

Come on Mother Nature - shake things up a bit - spread the love! 

Ok I have ranted.....can you tell we are starving for a little weather east of the Continental Divide here in Colorado!!!

This is not a typical post for me....so let's get off the rant and on to some weather.

If you live in the northeast and like a good spring snow....you may just get your wish later this week! There is a lot of uncertainty in the forecast....but if things come together....they could see a 6 inch+ snow along the I-95 megalopolis!

Here is a map of the potential weather hazards facing the U.S. over the next week. It includes several pockets of heavy precipitation around the nation, strong storms over Florida, high winds in southeast Alaska and continued drought conditions over the southern and central Rockies.

Wild spring weather strikes much of nation

Everything was on the maps Tuesday - from tornadoes in Iowa to a late season winter storm dropping snow that was blown about on strong, gusty winds from Montana to New York.

Across Colorado, it was fire and ice - literally!

A huge wildfire just a few miles west of Golden had consumed over 1,200 acres at last check.

Just 30 to 40 miles due west of the fire snow was falling along and west of the Continental Divide - keeping the ski season alive!

Temps near 90 degrees covered Florida while widespread 80s were found across the deep south.

Another wicked storm was slamming the Pacific Coast. In the past few days, everything from heavy mountain snow to flooding and even a few tornadoes have been reported in California.

Spring just around the corner

Well if you have been waiting for spring - it's finally here!    Arriving late Sunday afternoon.

It was a long winter full of records for many locations - with numerous snow and cold events from Seattle to Tulsa and Atlanta.

Blizzard hits northern plains

Old man winter is making for a miserable weekend across the northern plains states.

Grand Forks has been reporting sustained winds in the 30-40 mph range with gusts close to 60 mph for the past several hours.

In addition to the wind, the city is reporting blowing snow with temps in the single digits. All I can say is BRRR!

Several roads are closed in the region, including Interstate 29 from the South Dakota border north to the border with Canada.

Meanwhile, it was an amazing day in the Denver area on Friday with a high of 71 degrees!

Killer tornado strikes Louisiana

Severe thunderstorms developed along the central Gulf Coast states on Saturday producing widespread wind, hail and heavy rain.

A few tornadoes were also reported - unfortunately - one was a killer.

The estimated tornado rating is at least an EF-2 and it was on the ground several miles, crossing Interstate 10 and hitting the small town of Rayne.

The twister damaged dozens of homes and killed a 21-year-old woman when a tree fell through her house.

Click here to visit the National Weather Service office in Lake Charles, Louisiana.

Active days ahead

The weather pattern is about to turn stormy for much of the nation as a series of storm systems move along the jet stream.

Hazards include heavy snow in the mountains and over portions of the high plains states early next week. As well as heavy rain in the Ohio Rivey Valley and eventually over the northeast.

A severe weather outbreak is possible by the middle of next week over the middle of the country.

I know this map is busy - but it just shows how crazy the next few days will be!