Caitlin Connell

IMG_4277png-1701210172007.png

<p>Even though we<em> just </em>dealt with a tornado outbreak in the Plains last week and into the weekend, it's the middle of storm season, and the next low is on our doorstep. <em>Please do not let severe weather fatigue get the best of you.</em></p><p>Today, a few tornadoes, pockets of large hail, and strong winds pose a threat with the additional risk of significantly large hailstones over 2" in diameter and wind gusts 75+ mph. These specific risks reach the Northern Great Plains and farther south into the Central Plain (above).</p><p>Related article: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.weathernationtv.com/news/flood-threat-continues-in-the-plains"><strong><em><u>Flood Threat Continues in the Plains</u></em></strong></a></p><p>The Storm Prediction Center (SPC) has issued a <strong>SLIGHT </strong>(level 2 out of 5) and <strong>ENHANCED</strong> (level 3 out of 5) risk for Tuesday. The enhanced risk reaches from Des Moines, IA, through Kansas City, MO, but storms will be possible from I-94 in Minnesota through West Texas. Isolated storms fire off around the peak heating hours of the day along our cold front and area of low pressure. Complex storms cluster into the evening hours as the frontal system moves east, especially in Minnesota, Oklahoma, and northern Texas, with storms continuing overnight.</p><video src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/2024-04-30 10-39-37-1714495423419.mp4" controls="true" width="100%"></video><p>The severe weather risk continues Wednesday for central Kansas and much of the southern Plains. Another <strong>ENHANCED </strong>risk has been issued with threats similar to those on Tuesday. Once again, large hail (2" in diameter) and wind gusts over 75 mph are possible for the areas highlighted in orange in central Kansas.</p><p><img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/hail-1714497851935.jpg">Storms on Wednesday look to fire off of the same frontal boundary and, by the afternoon hours, nearly the same places as Tuesday. However, Wednesday's storms will be prone to more individual-in-nature storm cells that could produce damaging hail and tornadoes, especially from Western Kansas through West Texas. Overnight, these storms cluster into a strong line that blasts through Texas with damaging winds and heavy rainfall.</p><video src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/2024-04-30 04-47-29-1714474073256.mp4" controls="true" width="100%"></video><p>More storms continue into Thursday, with another severe weather risk stretching from the northern Plains to Texas. The threat is lower-end on Thursday as our atmosphere will be "worked over," but we will still see the potential for a few stronger end storms by the afternoon and evening hours.</p><p><img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/soc thu-1714485945067.jpg"></p>

More Storms Target the Heartland Today

sigstodayjpg-1714495273179.jpeg

Kevin Schneider

A021DDE71AA34C50BB5468289EA6B1D7jpeg-1699372868991.jpeg

<p>High pressure along the East Coast has helped to bump temperatures into the 70's and 80's on Monday afternoon. Multiple records have been broken across the region (above), including D.C. and Baltimore, where temps soared into the 90s. Even a long-standing record from 1899 was tied in Cleveland, OH when the city hit 84 degrees Monday afternoon. There will be less potential to break records on Tuesday, with the warmest air over the mid-Atlantic. Showers and clouds will mean cooler temps in the Northeast through the end of the week.</p><p><img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/Screenshot 2024-04-29 161339-1714428828312.png">Showers and storms sweep across the Northeast today, with the opportunity for heavy rain. Even if you don't see a shower, the cloud cover will keep you cooler in New England. Highs will be on a bit of a roller coaster ride throughout the Northeast, depending on when the cold front slides through your region.</p><video src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/2024-04-30 07-53-48-1714485386397.mp4" controls="true" width="100%"></video><p>As mentioned above, some storms will be stronger, especially in the southern tier of New York and central/eastern Pennsylvania. The Storm Prediction Center has issued a low-end, marginal risk for the wind and hail. </p><p><img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/spc ne-1714496186207.jpg">Forecast accumulation indicates the chance of seeing up to 3" of rain in localized spots of the Northeast. This warranted a low-level tier of a flood threat from in the Northeast Tuesday.</p><p><img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/Tuesday rain totals-1714476864594.jpg"></p>

Lucy Bergemann

Record Highs Hit in the Northeast, Rain Tuesday

Screenshot20240429161003png-1714428615831.png

<div dir="ltr">
<div dir="ltr">
<div dir="ltr">
<div dir="ltr">
<div>
<div dir="ltr">
<div>Lucy is originally from the Boston area but has spent the last four years forecasting and living in Colorado! She stayed in the northeast for her education, graduating Summa Cum Laude from SUNY Oswego with a B.S. in Meteorology. Just a few days after graduation, she made the cross country move to Colorado Springs, CO to begin her career at KKTV, the CBS affiliate. Lucy has covered historic blizzards, tornadoes, windstorms, the largest wildfires in Colorado state history and dust storms ... they truly "get it all" in Colorado! Lucy is excited to forecast on a national level and continue her passion of explaining the science behind the weather!</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>

Untitleddesign4png-1682539884658.png

<p>Spring snow opportunities continue in the Rocky Mountains, with snow expected through the middle of the week from the Cascades of Oregon to the Rockies of Montana, the Tetons of Wyoming, and the Front Range of Colorado. The snow is welcomed at ski resorts that are still open. Breckenridge is expected to stay open through May 12th, and Snowbird in Utah expects to close on Memorial Day Weekend!</p><p>This is all thanks to two areas of low pressure in our upper atmosphere, known as "double barrel lows," that follow one right after the other. The low-pressure systems pull in moisture and energy to produce high-elevation snowfall and rainfall for the lower elevations. </p><video src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/2024-04-30 10-31-43-1714495076445.mp4" controls="true" width="100%"></video><p>Rain and snow move out of the Pacific Northwest throughout the day on Tuesday before entering the northern Rockies overnight. Steady snow continues in the highest elevations of Montana, Wyoming, and Colorado through Wednesday, with another round of moisture moving onshore during that time period for the PNW. The bottom line is that it stays unsettled in our highest peaks through the end of the week. Snowfall totals will be in the range of 6"+ for areas over 8,000' where winter weather advisories are in effect. </p><video src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/2024-04-30 10-33-32-1714495256305.mp4" controls="true" width="100%"></video>

Spring Snow in the Mountain West

springsnowjpg-1714495607810.jpeg

<p>Flooding has become a very serious component of our nearly week-long severe weather threat that's still ongoing. Some places in Texas, Kansas, and Oklahoma have seen well over 9" rain in the past few days, contributing to the elevated concern for flood threats. The ground is already <em>highly </em>saturated in many states. We can't stress enough how important it is to adhere to any flood alerts that may be issued in the upcoming days.</p><p><img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/rain totals-1714478022969.png">Related article:<strong><em><u> </u></em></strong><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.weathernationtv.com/news/another-round-of-strong-storms-targets-the-heartland"><strong><em><u>Another Round of Strong Storms Targets The Heartland</u></em></strong></a></p><p>Our field correspondent Jonathan Petramala was in Grovetown, TX when it was under a flash flood emergency on Monday morning. He said the water smelled of sewage when the drainage systems were overwhelmed.</p><div class="twitter-tweet" style="display: flex; justify-content: center" data-twitt-post-id="1784900436136497638" src="https://twitter.com/WeatherNation/status/1784900436136497638"></div><p></p><p>The next three days bring a flood risk, including a risk of flash flooding. In much of the Central U.S. Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday there is a <strong>marginal </strong>and <strong>slight </strong>risk for flooding. Tuesday's slight risk is a relatively smaller bullseye in eastern Kansas and northern Oklahoma, but Wednesday and Thursday will be much broader from the Northern Great Plains into the Western Gulf.</p><video src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/forecast-1714496441525.mp4" controls="true" width="100%"></video><p>One silver lining to this forecast is that much of the Central Plains is dealing with drought conditions. The data below is from April 23, 2024. We'll get another update on this chart on Thursday this week. This rainfall will no doubt help alleviate some of the drought concerns but remember that too much of a good thing can turn bad.</p><p><img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/drought-1714478228596.png"></p>

Flood Threat Continues in the Plains this Week

newrainjpg-1714497115218.jpeg

Alana Cameron was born and raised in Canada in the city of Mississauga, just outside of Toronto. Alana is the oldest of 4 siblings, all close in age, and grew up playing outside with them in all types of weather. After graduating high school, Alana moved to study at the University of British Columbia in Kelowna for a year before transferring to Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia where she completed a Bachelor of Science in Physics and Atmospheric Science. Upon completion, Alana moved back to Toronto where she completed a post-grad degree in Meteorology at York University. After her post-grad, she went on to complete another post-grad in Broadcast Journalism - TV News at Fanshawe College in London, Ontario. During her final year of studies she had the privilege of interning with the best in the business in Canada at The Weather Network. Once she finished her internship, she got the call from small-town Denison, Texas where she accepted a job as an on-air meteorologist at KTEN-TV, right in tornado alley, covering severe weather from Sherman/Denison (North Texas) to Ada (Southern Oklahoma). After the most active tornado season Oklahoma had seen in May 2019 (105 tornadoes!) Alana is excited to join WeatherNation to cover weather all across the nation. If you're interested in following her on social media she can be found @alanacameronwx!

Alana Cameron

AlanaCameronjpeg-1679518648021.jpeg

<p><strong>UPDATE:</strong> The National Weather Service out of Norman, Oklahoma, has upgraded the rating of the Marietta tornado to <strong>EF-4</strong> with estimated peak winds of 165-170 mph, a path length of 27 miles, and a path width of 900 yards. Unfortunately, this tornado brought at least one fatality to Love County. This tornado developed southwest of Marietta and moved north-northeast over I-25 before moving into Marietta towards Lake Murray and Dickson.</p><div class="twitter-tweet" style="display: flex; justify-content: center" data-twitt-post-id="1785021848498876600" src="https://twitter.com/NWSNorman/status/1785021848498876600"></div><p>Here's a look at the destruction our field corresponded Brandon Clement observed upon daylight on Sunday.</p><div class="twitter-tweet" style="display: flex; justify-content: center" data-twitt-post-id="1784689042388668902" src="https://twitter.com/WeatherNation/status/1784689042388668902"></div><p></p><p>The town of Sulphur, OK also took a direct hit from a destructive tornado on Saturday night, with a rating of <strong>at least EF3.</strong> According to the NWS, estimated peak winds were 160-165 mph, path length was 7.5 miles, and width was 440 yards. Our Field Correspondent, Brandon Clement, took this video earlier in the day:</p><p>Related articles: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.weathernationtv.com/news/tornadoes-touch-down-in-nebraska-and-iowa-on-friday"><em><u>Destructive Tornadoes Tear Through Plains Friday</u></em></a> and<strong> </strong><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.weathernationtv.com/news/Severe%20Weather%20Threat%20Monday%20From%20Texas%20to%20the%20Lower%20Mississippi%20Valley"><em><u>Severe Weather Threat Makes it to the Gulf Coast</u></em></a></p><div class="twitter-tweet" style="display: flex; justify-content: center" data-twitt-post-id="1784590897423765833" src="https://twitter.com/WeatherNation/status/1784590897423765833"></div><p>Unlike Friday, Saturday brought in more than double the amount of hail reports compared to tornado reports. The red dots below are all reports of tornadoes, not yet confirmed, but reports.</p><p><img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/lsr-1714302865222.png">According to the National Weather Service, at least 25 tornadoes have been confirmed from this weekend.</p><p><img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/25-1714418757244.png">The hail was large and damaging, along with the strong wind gusts and the confirmed tornadoes that touched down. About teacup-sized hail fell in Fox, OK on Saturday, and we're sure that hailstones that large will easily cause damage.</p><p><img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/Screenshot 2024-04-28 052810-1714303700198.png">This is a terrifying view of a tornado touching down in the rural area of Kendall, KS. You can easily see its wide base on the ground, along with much of the dust and debris that was picked up.</p><video src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/VO_042724_RNC_NEAR KENDALL, KS_SHORTER VERSION OF TORNADO JOSH INTERCEPTED AND DEBRIS FLYING AT THE END_EMAIL_JOSH HEYNEN_DW_E042724-1714303991447.mp4" controls="true" width="100%"></video>

Over 25 Tornadoes Touch Down in Oklahoma this Weekend

mariettapng-1714418486158.png

WeatherNation Meteorologists

headshotspng-1676305264677.png

<p>Several teams of meteorologists and storm damage experts are actively investigating and surveying damage from Friday, April 26 across the I-80 corridor. According to the National Weather Service of Omaha, at least 5 EF-3 tornadoes have been confirmed.</p><p><img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/04-29 nws omaha-1714445003827.png">It all started when a tornado touched down in Lincoln, NE, just before 3 PM central time on Friday. This storm was tornado-warned for more than 50 miles as it tore through suburbs of the Omaha metro and eventually moved across the Missouri River and into Iowa. It has been confirmed as an EF-3 on the ground for 8.6 miles and with winds of 158 mph. This tornado struck Waverly, NE, a suburb on the NE side of Lincoln, where it derailed a train.</p><div class="twitter-tweet" style="display: flex; justify-content: center" data-twitt-post-id="1783955995875565622" src="https://twitter.com/WeatherNation/status/1783955995875565622"></div><p>An EF-3 tornado was confirmed in Elkhorn, NE on the west side of Omaha. Winds were at 165 mph with this tornado. After the tornado moved through, our field crews observed high-tension power lines snapped in Elkhorn, NE, outside of Omaha. </p><div class="twitter-tweet" style="display: flex; justify-content: center" data-twitt-post-id="1784243608318595371" src="https://twitter.com/WeatherNation/status/1784243608318595371"></div><p>There was a "tornado emergency" issued for the northern suburbs of Omaha, NE, at around 3:45 PM CT Friday as a result of the Elkhorn tornado storm cell. This is the highest level of tornado warning the National Weather Service can issue and signals that there is a confirmed tornado on the ground and an extremely dangerous situation unfolding. A traffic camera in the Omaha area caught the tornado. Another tornado warning was issued for Omaha, including downtown, and damage was confirmed in the region. Additional surveys will be conducted to determine the strength of tornadoes in Omaha. </p><div class="twitter-tweet" style="display: flex; justify-content: center" data-twitt-post-id="1783961145100980348" src="https://twitter.com/WeatherNation/status/1783961145100980348"></div><p>Not only were there confirmed tornadoes in Nebraska, but numerous tornadoes also struck Iowa, impacting western and Central Iowa. There were 6 EF-2 tornadoes with winds of 111-135 mph and 2 EF-1 tornadoes. </p><p><img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/iowa-1714486552531.jpg"></p>

Tornadoes Tear Through the Heartland Friday

zoomedintornadopng-1714163494934.png

Originally born in Spokane, Washington,  Jackie's Dad was in the Air Force which led her to a life of travel. She has lived in Wichita, Okinawa, Japan, Baltimore, New Jersey, Indiana and South Carolina.  After graduating from Kadena High School, in Okinawa Japan, she got a full basketball scholarship to Coppin State College. On the court she was a 4-year starter and reached over 1000 points in her basketball career. She was also named Athlete of the Year for the whole university in 2002. Off the court, she earned a degree in Broadcast Production/English.

After college, she landed a job as a radio personality. Jackie went on to have a successful career for 12 years working at KXLY broadcast center. While on the radio, she decided to change career. Jackie went back to school, graduating from the Mississippi State Meteorology Broadcast Program. From snow, to tornadoes, to hurricanes, she has had experience forecasting all these events.

Jackie Brown

JackieBrownjpeg-1679518619427.jpeg

<p>The severe threat has lessened this evening and there is now a GENERAL risk for thunderstorms for the overnight hours and a low threat for severe due to the loss of daytime heating. An isolated storm will be possible, but there will be limited precipitation through the overnight hour for Texas and Louisiana.</p><video src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/gggg-1714440061662.mp4" controls="true" width="100%"></video><p></p><h2>Flood Threat</h2><p>In addition to the severe weather, there is an ongoing flood threat. Many places in the Central and Southern Plains have already seen over 9" of rain in the past few days. This means the ground is already highly saturated in some spots, making it more likely to flood. The Weather Prediction Center has maintained a <strong>MARGINAL </strong>to<strong> SLIGHT</strong> risk for flash flooding through Tuesday morning in these areas.</p><p><img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/04-29 wpc through tonight-1714419623445.png"></p><p><img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/04-29 central-1714444898379.png"></p>

A Few Storms Lingering Along The Gulf

SEVERETONIGHTTTpng-1714439576130.png

A rare April blizzard struck the Upper Midwest this weekend, producing more than a foot of snow with wind gusts topping 50 mph. To no surprise, there were widespread travel problems with road closures, event cancellations and postponements. 753 flights were canceled at <a href="https://www.mspairport.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport</a>, which shut down operations completely for eight hours on Saturday. Statewide in Minnesota, there were hundreds of accidents and more than a thousand spin-outs or reports of vehicles sliding off roads. Green Bay, Wisconsin recorded the <a href="https://media.weathernationtv.com/news/green-bay-wi-sees-biggest-snowstorm-129-years/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">heaviest snowfall in 129 years</a>.

https://twitter.com/kare11/status/985321832885649408

https://twitter.com/kare11/status/985835217901453312

https://twitter.com/kare11/status/985538763622412288

The <a href="https://www.mlb.com/twins" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Minnesota Twins</a> cancelled three baseball games from Friday to Sunday, a first at Target Field. Even with the final snowflakes falling Sunday evening, dozens of schools and some government offices will be opening late or closed today around the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota.

https://twitter.com/MPS_News/status/985698493703557120

https://twitter.com/kare11/status/985296724284592128

https://twitter.com/bpmccauley/status/985273281820463106

The blizzard helped set several snowfall records in the Twin Cities. In an average year, Minneapolis and St. Paul typically see about 53" of snow. Since January 1st, 70.3" has fallen, the most to start a year. MSP International Airport recorded 14.9" over the three day period, the record for the largest April snowstorm. An April monthly snowfall record has also already been set.

https://twitter.com/NWSTwinCities/status/985696164006809600

https://twitter.com/NWSTwinCities/status/985679204950962176

https://twitter.com/NWSTwinCities/status/985556520883679234

35 years ago, the area also experienced a blizzard. That was the last time both Hennepin (that includes Minneapolis) and Ramsey (including St. Paul) counties were both under Blizzard Warnings. Surprisingly, this storm did not make the top 10 for all-time snowstorms. It ranks in at number 11, with the most accumulation being the Halloween storm of 1991 which saw more than two feet of snow.

https://twitter.com/MikeAugustyniak/status/985361241853054976

https://twitter.com/svensundgaard/status/985843624943476736

https://twitter.com/NWSTwinCities/status/985875007019642880

For WeatherNation: Meteorologist Mace Michaels

Historic Weekend Blizzard in the Twin Cities

More Storms Target the Heartland Today

Even though we just dealt with a tornado outb

Record Highs Hit in the Northeast, Rain Tuesday

High pressure along the East Coast has helped

Spring Snow in the Mountain West

Spring snow opportunities continue in the Roc

Flood Threat Continues in the Plains this Week

Flooding has become a very serious component

Over 25 Tornadoes Touch Down in Oklahoma this Weekend

UPDATE: The National Weather Service out of N

Tornadoes Tear Through the Heartland Friday

Several teams of meteorologists and storm dam

A Few Storms Lingering Along The Gulf

The severe threat has lessened this evening a