Saturday, March 9, 2019

Severe thunderstorm, tornado risk to return to central US prior to mid-March

By Alex Sosnowski, AccuWeather senior meteorologist





A new wave of severe thunderstorms, some which may bring tornadoes, are expected to erupt over the southern and central Plains during Tuesday, March 12 to Wednesday, March 13.
March can bring wild weather over the central United States as storms from the Pacific Ocean get their second wind after traversing the Rockies. Warm, moist air is drawn in from the Gulf of Mexico, while cold air continues to flow southward from Canada.
A storm along the California coast this weekend is forecast to move inland over the southwest on Monday.
Monday SW

Where rain does not dampen the ground, enough wind can kick up to create areas of blowing dust and an increased wildfire danger over the southern High Plains.
Part of the area from southern Colorado to western and central Texas has received little rain and snow over the winter and this has resulted in building drought conditions.
The storm is then likely to strengthen significantly over the Plains during Tuesday and Wednesday.
Storms are likely to form and become severe with damaging winds, large hail and frequent lightning strikes from western Texas to western Oklahoma and southwestern Kansas during Tuesday afternoon.
Severe Next Week 3 pm

It is possible that a few tornadoes are spawned in the strongest storms. However, the exact number of tornadoes this far out will be dependent on the exact profile of the atmosphere.
The storms are then likely to advance across the central parts of Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas during Tuesday night.
On Wednesday, the severe thunderstorm and tornado risk is likely to extend from northeastern Texas, northward to eastern Oklahoma and Kansas, and eastward to Missouri, Arkansas, northwestern Louisiana, and the western parts of Mississippi, Tennessee and Kentucky, as well as southern Illinois.
There is a chance the severe weather may continue to advance eastward later in the week.
More snow likely for Rockies, northern Plains next week
Farther to the north, the same storm is likely to bring a swath of heavy snow and the potential for blizzard conditions from parts of the central Rockies to the Canada border.
Snow Next Week

The early estimate for heavy snow and increasing wind, which can disrupt travel and daily activities is from central Colorado to North Dakota and northwestern Minnesota.
Download the free AccuWeather app to stay alert to the latest forecast and receive severe weather watches and warnings.

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