Active Weather Weekend Ahead

Storm chasers from all over are heading to the center of the nation today as we set the stage for what could be several days of active weather.

We may not be looking at an outbreak as severe and intense as we did last weekend - but it is somethng we will all need to watch and see how it unfolds.

One thing different about this weekend is the area of potential severe weather covers much more ground. It almost stretches from Canada to Mexico - with the entire center of the country seeing the risk for strong to severe storms as some point.

The winds I spoke of in yesterday's blog have shifted east over the midwest. Warm southerly winds are blowing strong this morning in places like Des Moines, Iowa.

Here in Colorado the winds died down - but not before a few gusts that topped 100 mph over the higher terrain of the San Juan Mountains of southwest Colorado.

Denver's high topped out at 79 degrees on Wednesday and now we're in the lower 30s with rain and snow around the metro area. Between Denver and Fort Collins the snow has been falling hard at times with accumulations up to 5 inches this morning.

Somebody, Please Turn Down The Wind!

Well if you live in the center of the country and it isn't windy where you are  - just wait - it's coming.

A new storm system is moving into the western US today and it has a tight pressure gradient associated with it.

Below is a surface map showing the storm as it moves over the Rockies during the next 36 hours. Out ahead of it, I drew some rust colored arrows showing the southwesterly winds.

These winds will bring some very warm weather to the middle of the nation - wth highs near 80 degrees from Minneapolis south to eastern Colorado.

Let me just tell you - these winds are gusting to around 50 mph here in the Denver area. In fact, last hour, a 46 mph gust was reported at Centennial Airport, just a few miles from my house.

As we head into the upcoming weekend - this storm system will bring the chance for severe thunderstorms from Wisconsin and Minnesota to the Gulf Coast. By Saturday, we could see a severe weather outbreak in the lower Mississippi River Valley.

Florida Lives Up To Lightning Reputation

We all know Florida as the Sunshine State, but we may not think of it as the "Electric State!"

Florida receives more cloud-to-ground (CG) lightning strikes on average each year than any other US state - especially the central part of the peninsula.

In addition, Florida leads the US in the number of average annual lightning deaths each year.

Here is a link to a map of the average lightning strkes worldwide - as well as more about lightning strikes!

Click here to learn more about lightning than you ever thought you would know!

The picture above is from the article linked below. It was a very interesting read and I thank Adrienne Miller for sending me the story.

Overnight and early morning thunderstorms Monday moved across central Florida with a strong cold front.

It was the same front that produced the 4-day severe weather outbreak from the high plains of Colorado to the deep south - including that killer EF4 twister in central Mississippi.

The storm was extremely charged and produced an enormous and unusual amount of lightning - with over 1,600 strikes in the Tampa Bay area in just 15 minutes!

Florida native Adrienne Miller said, "this was hands down the craziest lightning I've ever seen in my life as a native!"

Read more about the Tampa Bay lightning storm Monday, April 26.

Deadly Weekend Across Arklamiss, Alabama

The Arklamiss region is cleaning up today after a severe weather outbreak that started Friday, but really intensified on Saturday.

Arklamiss is short for Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi.

Click here for a tornado summmary from the National Weather Service Office in Jackson, MS.

The path of damage is over 150 miles long, stretching from Tallulah, Louisiana to Starkville, Mississippi. It is still unclear if this was one continuous tornado or a multiple tornadoes - but it was caused by the same parent super cell thunderstorm complex.

Another hard hit area was northeast Alabama - where tornadoes touched down and caused numerous injuries with serious damage. One twister was on the ground nearly 30 miles.

Click here for tornado summary from Birmingham, Alabama.

Click here for tornado summary from Huntsville, Alabama - National Weather Service office.

Click here for another summary from Huntsville, Alabama.

More Severe Weather

We certainly had some severe weather on Friday with a handful of tornado reports - but it wasn't the huge outbreak forecasters feared.

That could change today, however - and the bullseye has shifted just a bit east over Mississippi and Alabama.

Fairly Quiet Thus Far

So far there have been a lot of storms in the mid-south, a handful of tornado warnings, and some large hail with at least 1 tornado touchdown in central Mississippi.

But we haven't seen the huge outbreak that forecasters feared.

There is still a front that will move through and well as some upper-level energy - and all the ingredients at the surface are still in place - so don't let down your guard.

It could be a bumpy night as the front moves through.

Violent Tornadoes Possible Today

Thursday was just a preview of what might be the largest, most intense tornado outbreak of the 2010 severe weather season.

Over 2 dozens twisters were reported on Thursday from the extreme eastern suburbs of Denver, CO to the Texas panhandle. Thankfully they were all over open rangeland.

There was damage to windows and cars reported from large hail - such as near Bennett, CO and across west-central Kansas.

Here is a map of the severe weather reports from Thursday.

Today the focus moves a bit further east - with a bullseye on the state of Arkansas.

Conditions are right to produce tornadoes - one forecast I saw said there is a 70 percent chance of a tornado touching down within 50 miles of Little Rock, Ar.

If there are any tornadoes, hopefully none of them will be long-track tornadoes - those on the ground for several dozen miles - such as the event on March 1, 1997.

I was a switchboard operator at JCPenney, McCain Mall - in North Little Rock, AR on this day. We had to evacuate as the storm went by.

I recall taking a phone call from the husband of our store manager who was about 25 miles ahead of the storm. He said plywood was falling out of the sky.

The tornado had been on the ground so long - it had an incredible amount of debris circulating in the clouds above and it was falling several miles out ahead of the twister.

Read More: March 1, 1997 - Arkansas Tornado Outbreak

One thing is for certain - we're going to see an outbreak of severe weather today - and the mid-south will likely take a hit with large hail, heavy rain and deadly lightning.

Tornadoes are always tough to predict - but there will likely be some - so if you live in that area and read this blog keep an eye to the sky!

Have your tornado action plan ready in case the unthinkable happens - look around your home or office today and decide where you will take cover should a tornado threaten your area.

Keep in mind you always want to be on the lowest level of your home or office, and in an interior room. Bathrooms are often great places to seek shelter, ESPECIALLY if they are an interior room, because the plumbing offers reinforcement to the walls.

Closests and hallways are great places too. Stay away from windows!

Where ever you end up - protect your head!! Flying debris is one of the biggest dangers during a tornado.

I always heard as a kid growing up to be in the southwest corner of your home or business because tornadoes always travel southwest to northeast. This isn't always the case.

And LISTEN to the latest weather watches and warnings for your county. If you are geographically challenged, or are new to your area, take a little time to learn the names of cities, towns and counties near where you live.

NOAA weather radios are inexpensive and a great tool to have. You get an alert the minute the National Weather Service issues a watch or warning. In most cases, you will have the warning before the local media.

Severe Weather Outlook Thursday

Well, this map of severe storm reports from Wednesday is fairly quiet. There was one delayed tornado report from extreme southeast Colorado.

It was in an open field and no damage was reported.

Today's map will likely be a lot busier as severe weather spreads into the central plains. There is a 10% chance of a tornado in the eastern Texas panhandle and across extreme western Oklahoma.

The 5% area reaches from northeast Colorado to southwest Texas.

The rain here in the Denver area was sure nice on Wednesday. It started as a few strong storms over the southern Denver suburbs - with small hail reported in Highlands Ranch and east of town in Bennett.

Then the storms coverted into rain with a few embedded pockets of thunder.

I woke up at 2 am to the sound of rain rolling down the gutters of the house. I had to open my window and listen!

I don't want to say rain is rare here in Denver - but we definitely have a season for rain and a season for snow.

Almost without fail, any precipitation that falls between late October and early April is snow. It has been quite a while since we have seen a good, soaking rain like what is happening right now.

Then on either side of the late October to early April window we have our transitional periods with storms starting as rain and often ending as snow. That is very common in September and late April or early May around here.

June, July and August usually bring just rain to Denver.

So this is the first real significant rain event we have seen in the Denver area since last year - and we are just loving it!!

Western Storm Has Eyes For Central U.S.

Well it's on shore and taking shape - the west coast storm system has spread wind, rain and snow into California, Washington and Oregon - and now states inland.

The winds have been gusty over the past 24 hours in and around southren California.  25 to 40 mph winds have been clocked in the Los Angeles, Ventura and Santa Barbara vicinities.

Modesto, Fresno, Stockton and Redding (California) all recorded anywhere from 0.75 to 1.25 inches of rain over the past day - and up to 6 inches of snow has already fallen in the Sierra Mountains.

This water is much needed - as a lot of it will become drinking water for residents of southern California.

Over the next few days - this storm will produce the most widespread severe weather we have seen this season - stretching from eastern Colorado through Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Missouri.

Large hail, heavy rain, dangerous cloud-to-ground lightning and some torandoes are expected.

Severe Weather Outbreak Expected This Weekend

The weather will turn active heading into the latter half of the work week - it's all because of a new storm system rolling in off the Pacific Ocean.

Below is a picture of the western satellite view - can you see all the little "speckled clouds" - just little puffs all over the place?

This is a visible sign that a storm system has a lot of cold air aloft - and will likely be dynamic as it moves across the region.

I have drawn in the trough and area of low pressure.

The storm is expected to bring a lot of rain to the valleys with snow in the mountains. The southern track will create a large over of unsettled weather right over the central Rockies.

Toward the weekend - we may see a severe weather outbreak that spans 3 days as this storm slowly ejected into the center of the nation.

Watching The West; Planes Over Europe

Well the week ahead looks like it is going to be active as a large storm system moves onshore from the Pacific.

It will slowly trek across the country with heavy mountain snow in the Rockies and rain for lower elevations.

One it gets across the Rockies - it may spawn some severe weather across the plains states as we head toward the weekend.

Here is a current weather map - you can see the cold front getting ready to move into Washington, Oregon and California.

Heavy Rain Soaks Portions Of Texas

Heavy rains fell on Thursday, and continue to fall, across portions of Texas.

We have seen amonts anywhere from the 4 to 9 inch range and there have been reports of flash flooding.

It seems like the hardest hit areas have been in and around Lubbock, San Antonio and near Corpus Christi on the east side of Interstate37.

Highway 72 near Corpus Christi has been flooded with some homes also flooded in the town of  Three Rivers.

There were some heavy rains in portions of northeast Kansas on Thursday with widespread 1 to 3 inch totals.

Severe weather is possible today across the Ohio River Valley. The greatest threat is along Interstate 70 from Indianapolis through southern and central Ohio and into Pennsylvania.

It's windy today across the upper midwest with red flag warnings across much of northern and central Minnesota.

Meteor Lights Up Night Sky Over Wisconsin

Some might have thought it was a distant thunderstorm with rolling thunder and some lightning, but it wasn't...a large meteorite, so big it was breifly detected on Doppler Radar, was the cause of nighttime excitement in the skies over southern Wisconsin.

It was even visible across northern Illinois and northeast Iowa.

I have several links for you to look at - including radar snapshots, still pictures and video.

NWS La Crosse - radar images, still pics

NWS Milwaukee - video

Video From Howard County, Iowa Sheriff's Office

That is just amazing!!

There is another great web site, hosted from Guffey, Colroado, called Cloud Bait - and this is a great resource for tracking meteorites and fireball sightings.

On to another note...it is hail season across much of the country. Here in the Front Range of Colorado - the hail capital of the US - we are gearing up for it.

Something I don't think too many homeowners think about is hail and their roofs. Here is some great tips and reminders for an insurance agent friend on mine. It applies to anyone - not just homeowners in Colorado.

Great hail information to protect your home and it's roof - click here!

Colo. Sees First 2010 Tornado; No Damage Reported

Tuesday brought a relatively small severe weather outbreak to the central and high plains - with one tornado report - and a few dozen wind and hail reports from northeast New Mexico to central North Dakota.

The tornado was reported in extreme east-central Colorado, in open fields near the Kansas state line.

My good friend and fellow meteorologist/storm chaser Tony Laubach was on some of the storms in western Nebraska Tuesday afternoon - below are a few links to some video he shot of street flooding and hail.

Ogallala, Nebraska - Street Flooding

High Wind, Hail - Nebraska Storms

The storms brought a lot of lightning - making for a beautiful show as night fell. Below is a link to a timelapse set in Las Animas, Colorado - eastern Colorado was getting over 4,000 lightning strikes per hour with the line of storms. Thanks to Meteorologist Matt Meister at KRDO in Colorado Springs for this video link.

Click here to view lightning on timelapse from Las Animas, Colorado!

We survived another very windy day in the Rockies - winds gusts between 40 and 70 mph for hours on Tuesday. It was miserable!  Does high wind put you in a bad mood?  It does me - very irritating when it blows constantly. We are talking so strong and so constant you can't even enjoy a nice walk - at times you couldn't walk into the wind it was so strong and gusty..

The good part of it - at least here along the Front Range in Colorado - is it was a warm wind from a westerly direction.

The picture below is the 8 to 14 day precipitation outlook for the 50 US states. It says much of the west could see higher than normal precipitation. Below normal conditions are anticipated in northern Alaska and across New England.

Now hopefully this will come true for New England - they need a chance to keep drying out after historic floods during March.

Spring Storms

Well let's start with the wind...whew it blew yesterday evening and throughout most of the night. It was sustained out of the south at 25 to 35 mph for hours - but it peaked around midnight with 2 straight hours of sustained winds at 40 mph, gusting into the mid 50s mph.....that is like a tropical storm!

Below are the observations from Aurora's Buckley Air Force Base. I almost feel like I need to get up on the roof and check things out - to make sure nothing blew away! 

23:55 S 41 G 55 10.00 Partly Cloudy and Windy FEW060 SCT120 SCT200 59 39 48% 29.67 998.5


22:55 S 40 G 56 25.00 Mostly Cloudy and Windy SCT120 BKN200 61 37 42% 29.64 997.7

Today we are expecting the first severe thunderstorms of the season across the high plains. The map below outlines the area with a slight risk for severe weather.
 

Heavy rain fell around south Florida on Monday with street flooding in and around Miami, Ft. Lauderdale and West Palm. In fact, Miami set a new daily rainfall record. They received 2.15 inches of rain breaking the old record of 2.00 inches last set in 1900.

There was also a small, short-lived tornado near Belle Glade, Florida on Monday. It didn't produce any damage or injuries.

And I forgot to recap the severe weather that hit California over the past few days. Many locations in the higher elevations have seen snow measured in feet! Such as in and around Blue Canyon.

In the lower elevations, high wind and moderate to heavy rain fell, along with some thunderstorms. Lightning caused some fires in the Fresno vicinity. Trees were uprooted in the Santa Barbara area.

And hail fell in many locations, covering the ground at times - making it look like a winter wonderland.