Severe weather is forecasted to return to parts of the Mississippi Valley this weekend, causing concern for an area still recovering from a recent deadly tornado outbreak. While the upcoming weather system is expected to be relatively minor compared to the recent monster thunderstorms that spawned numerous tornadoes and reports of storm damage, it still poses a dangerous threat.
An increase in atmospheric moisture is anticipated over the southern Plains as a potent upper-level disturbance moves southeastward across the central U.S. by late Saturday evening. Thunderstorms are expected to develop in Kansas and Oklahoma on Saturday afternoon, intensifying as the system moves into Missouri overnight.
The Storm Prediction Center has upgraded a portion of southwestern Missouri to a level 2 threat for severe weather, with a lower level 1 threat covering a wider area of central and southwestern Missouri and eastern Kansas on Saturday. While major cities like Wichita, Kansas City, and St. Louis are not in the threat zone, the town of Rolla, which was hit by a tornado on Friday, is included in the risk area.
Although the tornado risk is minimal, hail up to quarter-sized or larger and wind gusts up to 60 mph are possible. The storm system is expected to encounter a favorable atmosphere for severe storm development as it moves into the southern Mississippi Valley and Ark-La-Tex region on Sunday, bringing a threat of damaging winds and hail.
NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center has issued a level 2 threat for severe weather for over 4 million people from Memphis, Tennessee, across northern Mississippi, through Shreveport, Louisiana, and into eastern Texas on Sunday. The primary concern is for damaging wind gusts, with a potential for hail and a low tornado risk.
Residents are advised to take precautions and stay informed about the changing weather conditions in their area.
“There is a significant risk for severe weather in the area,” explains FOX Weather Meteorologist Michael Estime. “We have all the necessary ingredients – moisture, lift, instability. However, there isn’t as much wind shear, which is the change in wind direction with height. Storms often thrive when they can utilize this change in wind direction to bring circulation down to the surface. This factor is somewhat lacking on Sunday, reducing the tornado risk slightly, though it’s not completely eliminated.”
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It’s important to note that these regions are also grappling with the aftermath of a recent tornado outbreak, both physically and emotionally.
Merwin emphasized the difficulty of confronting a new storm threat after experiencing trauma: “It’s incredibly challenging to be reminded of past traumatic events, particularly when triggered by the sound of thunder or receiving a weather alert on your phone. The emotional impact can be profound, especially when the previous event is still fresh in your memory, like in this case, just a week ago.”
Source: Severe weather threat returns this weekend to areas hard hit by tornado outbreak
