A tornado watch has been issued for parts of Minnesota and Iowa until 10 o’clock Saturday night.
Thunderstorms capable of producing tornadoes will move to the east-southeast toward the Mississippi River Valley. These storms should move at a speed between 20 and 30 miles per hour, steadily but not overly fast.
A tornado was spotted northwest of Mason City, Iowa prompting a warning earlier Saturday.
6/9/18 4pm: A tornado warning is in effect for the Mason City, Iowa area for an observed tornado. The tornado will be near Mason City around 4:05 p.m! Take cover now! #IAwx pic.twitter.com/seSfCyuuIG
— WeatherNation (@WeatherNation) June 9, 2018
Thankfully that storm weakened as it approached the metro area.
UPDATE: 4:15pm 6/9 – Fortunately the thunderstorm producing a tornado weakened when nearing Mason City, IA but has strengthened again to the east, prompting a new tornado warning. If a warning is issued for your locale, take shelter! #IAwx pic.twitter.com/9Q286HQAha
— WeatherNation (@WeatherNation) June 9, 2018
^^Again, these are previous alerts that *were* in effect for Iowa, not currently. It goes to show that storms can develop very quickly and transition through weakening and strengthening phases. That’s why you should be weather ready and prepared!
This isn’t the only area we’re watching this evening! A severe thunderstorm watch is in effect until 9 p.m. local time for northwest Montana.
These thunderstorms will have a straight-line wind impact, rather than the higher threat of tornadoes in Iowa. Wind gusts may reach up to 75 miles per hour in the shaded areas, while hail may grow to the size of ping pong balls! These thunderstorms will move very quickly, to the east-northeast as fast as 55 mph!
Finally, these two areas aren’t the only spots we’re watching Saturday!
Thunderstorms approaching the mid-Atlantic will drop heavy rain, possibly leading to pockets of flooding. Be aware of your surroundings throughout the rest of our weekend!
For WeatherNation, Meteorologist Steve Glazier