A significant period of severe weather is anticipated to develop in late week and persist into the Easter weekend across the Midwest and South, with the most severe conditions expected on Thursday and Friday. Severe thunderstorms carrying the threat of large hail, damaging winds, and possible tornadoes could affect millions of individuals from the Midwest to the Mississippi Valley.
The unsettling weather pattern is set to commence Wednesday night in southeastern Nebraska, central and eastern Kansas, and northwestern Oklahoma following an already active start to the severe weather season. According to FOX Weather Meteorologist Zack Green, there have been only three days without a severe storm threat since April 1.
Residents in cities such as Kansas City, Missouri; Wichita, Kansas; and Omaha, Nebraska are advised to stay updated on forecasts as there is a potential for large hail and damaging winds. Although the immediate risk of tornadoes is low on Wednesday night, Green emphasizes that the threat is not nonexistent.
The situation escalates on Thursday as the severe weather potential significantly increases and expands across parts of the Plains and Midwest. Approximately 11 million people are under threat from strong winds, large hail, and potential tornadoes, with the highest risk focused on eastern Nebraska, northern Missouri, and Iowa.
Temperatures climbing into the 80s in cities like Omaha and Kansas City are expected to further fuel storm development. The severe weather risk intensifies and widens on Friday, potentially impacting over 40 million people from the southern Plains to the Great Lakes. Numerous thunderstorms are forecasted to develop in a large but relatively narrow corridor stretching from Detroit to Oklahoma City and potentially reaching as far south as Dallas.
Green highlights Friday as a point of concern, emphasizing the possibility of damaging winds, large hail, and tornadoes. Even areas further north, like Minneapolis, could witness strong thunderstorms, while isolated severe storms may occur along a dryline in western Texas.
The active weather pattern is forecasted to continue throughout the Easter weekend, with rounds of severe storms likely to persist.
