Severe weather is expected to continue on Friday, threatening major cities from the South and Midwest to the Eastern U.S.
Why It Matters
The renewed threat of severe weather comes after meteorologists previously warned that an active pattern would bring thunderstorms from the northern Plains to the Atlantic coast this week, with conditions ripe for long-track tornadoes and widespread wind damage.
What To Know
The risk of severe weather will move south and east on Friday, AccuWeather forecasts, potentially affecting major cities such as St. Louis, Nashville, Memphis, and stretching eastward to Washington, D.C, and Richmond, Virginia.
Which Areas Could be Hit By Thunderstorms
The outlet also forecasts a high-risk zone for Friday, encompassing parts of southwestern Illinois, southern Indiana, western Kentucky, southeastern Missouri, and northwestern Tennessee.
Among the potential threats are tornadoes, hail, and flash flooding, along with “widespread” damaging wind gusts up to 70-80 miles per hour, AccuWeather said.
It warned that long-track tornadoes could occur across highly populated areas of the Mississippi and Tennessee valleys.
Damaging winds could result in power outages, tree and roof damage later on Friday afternoon and evening, it said.
AccuWeather noted that Thursday and Friday mark the first high-risk days for severe thunderstorms issued this month by its meteorologists, although this season has already experienced more high-risk days than the historical norm, the outlet said.
Power Outages
Hundreds of thousands were without power as of early Friday, following severe weather that swept through the area, according to PowerOutage.us, a service that tracks disruptions.
At the time of writing, Michigan was worst affected, with some 278,000 outages. In Indiana and Illinois, around 80,000 and 54,000 were reported respectively, with a further 17,735 in Wisconsin.
What People Are Saying
In an advisory shared with Newsweek, AccuWeather chief on-air meteorologist Bernie Rayno said: “It has been an exceptionally dangerous start to the spring severe weather season in the U.S.
“We’ve seen a steep increase in the number of tornado reports during March and early April. Unfortunately, we expect these numbers to continue climbing over the next few days.”
The National Weather Service forecast office, Milwaukee, Wisconsin said on X, formerly Twitter, Thursday: “Storms have come to an end for the night, but windy conditions will persist into Friday. A line of storms is expected to develop across southwest Wisconsin early on Friday afternoon and then track across southern WI through the afternoon. Gusty winds and large hail possible.”
NWS Chicago said on X, Thursday: “Storms today may bring damaging straight line winds which can down trees and tree branches, and loose objects can become airborne and dangerous.”
In a separate post, it said: “There is a chance for more storms Friday afternoon and evening. However, it’s still unclear what areas will end up seeing storms. Any storms that develop will have the potential to be strong to severe, with damaging winds and hail being the main threats.”
What Happens Next
By Saturday, storms may become more scattered across the Southern states, stretching from Dallas, Texas, to Virginia Beach, Virginia, AccuWeather predicted. Saturday afternoon and evening threats could include damaging wind gusts, heavy downpours, and a few isolated tornadoes.
The post Thunderstorm Update: Millions Across Multiple States in Risk Zone appeared first on Newsweek.
