Updated Jan. 10, 2020 5:57 PM
A life-threatening outbreak of severe thunderstorms that began during the midday hours over the southern Plains on Friday will continue to progress farther east over the southern United States on Saturday and into Saturday night.
By Friday night, violent storms are forecast to organize into a squall line, which is a continuous line of thunderstorms that can produce strong winds, flooding rainfall, hail and frequent lightning strikes, and it will continue to press eastward over the weekend.
This satellite image captured on Friday, Jan. 10, 2020 shows clouds gathering over the eastern two-thirds of the nation in response to a developing storm over the southern Plains. (NOAA / GOES-East)
AccuWeather Local StormMax™ wind gusts of 80 mph are predicted as storms shift east Saturday and Saturday night, and occasionally, brief spin-up tornadoes could touch down along the squall line.
The strongest storms will threaten to topple trees, trigger power outages and cause property damage. Even outside of the most volatile storms, blinding downpours could create dangerous travel conditions for motorists.
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During the day Saturday, cities likely to be in the path of the advancing line of severe thunderstorms include Memphis and Nashville, Tennessee; Tupelo, Vicksburg and Jackson, Mississippi; Baton Rouge, Alexandria and New Orleans, Louisiana; and Birmingham, Huntsville and Mobile , Alabama.
AccuWeather meteorologists are urging people in the storm's path to keep alert for rapidly changing weather conditions and heed all severe thunderstorm and tornado warnings and seek shelter as soon as they are issued.
The threat of damaging storms will not end during Saturday night, and the cover of darkness will add to the danger of the situation, making it difficult to spot when storms are approaching. Severe weather risks will extend to Atlanta and Columbus, Georgia; Pensacola, Florida; and Chattanooga, Tennessee. Strong storms may also extend to Augusta, Georgia; Greenville, South Carolina; and Asheville, North Carolina .
Flights may be grounded, and landings could be delayed as the thunderstorms approach major airport hubs. The storms are likely to arrive in the Atlanta area toward sunset or shortly thereafter on Saturday.
The potential for damaging wind gusts will also exist outside of where severe thunderstorms erupt as the dynamic storm system moves along farther north Saturday and Saturday night. Gusts as high as 70 mph are expected to affect portions of the Ohio Valley, southern and central Appalachians and the piedmont areas of the Carolinas and Virginia.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
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