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

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Severe storms moved across the Midwest Tuesday afternoon, leading to several reports of hail and tornadoes. The Storm Prediction reported seventeen tornadoes that ripped through 4 states, including Kansas, Iowa, Missouri, and Nebraska. Many people were affected by the numerous destructive tornadoes and damage. WeatherNation’s Field Meteorologist, Brett Adair, was on scene for a tornado outside of Salem, IA, and observed this damage nearby in New London.&nbsp;&nbsp;<div class="twitter-tweet" style="display: flex; justify-content: center" data-twitt-post-id="1780370587728376126" src="https://twitter.com/WeatherNation/status/1780370587728376126"></div>The National Weather Service has issued a preliminary rating for this tornado in New London, Iowa of EF-2. Maximum observed winds reached 130 mph with this storm damaging the region. Here's a look at the additional tornadoes that were observed across the Plains from Tuesday.<img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/Screenshot 2024-04-17 190447-1713402308810.png">As the cold front moves east, so does the severe weather threat. Throughout the day on Wednesday across Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, and Pennsylvania severe weather was reported. We had hail measuring up to 1.50" in diameter in Ohio, and winds gusting over 60 mph too.<img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/04-17_lsrs-1713401931942.png">The SPC has kept a slight risk (level 2 out of 5) for the overnight hours for strong to severe storms across portions of Ohioa, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia, Maryland, and western New York.<img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/svr risk-1713404009788.png">Our next severe weather threat for these areas could move back in by Thursday/Friday. For more of those details join us during :10 minutes past the hour on WeatherNation or read this related article here: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.weathernationtv.com/news/looking-ahead-thursdays-severe-threat">Severe Weather Threat Thursday and Friday,</a>

Ohio Valley Overnight Storms

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Kara has always been passionate about weather and knew from an early age that she wanted to become a meteorologist. Living in different regions of the country and experiencing weather events ranging from ice storms to tornadoes drove her to pursue a bachelor's degree in meteorology from the University of Oklahoma. Throughout college, storm chasing became a regular event for Kara, where she saw first-hand the power of the atmosphere. Kara graduated cum laude from OU and decided to further her meteorology education with a Master's degree from Mississippi State University. The deadly April 27, 2011 tornado outbreak struck while Kara was studying at MSU; her first “Dixie Alley” tornado event and an up close glimpse into the destruction of the storms she so closely studied. Her broadcast career began in Elvis’ birthplace, Tupelo, Mississippi, where she earned her Certified Broadcast Meteorologist seal from the American Meteorological Society. Kara's career has included coverage of all types of severe weather including tornado events, flooding and tropical systems across multiple southern states. Recently she helped cover the 2020 Easter Sunday deadly tornado outbreak in southeast Mississippi. In her free time, you can find Kara outdoors exploring new areas with her mini poodle,Truffles. Kara is also an avid runner and frequently races in 5Ks, 10Ks and half marathons. Say hi to Kara on <a href="https://twitter.com/wxkara">Twitter</a> and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/karajameswx">Facebook</a>!

Kara James

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It's been an active past few days with severe weather that tore through the Great Plains. For more information on that and how that energy is pushing farther to the east into the Midwest Wednesday, <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.weathernationtv.com/news/severe-weather-tuesday-wednesday">check out this article</a>.<h2>Overnight</h2>Another new low-pressure system is ejecting from the Rockies and as a result, there is another severe weather threat through the central Plains. These are the same areas that were hit hard by severe storms Monday night and Tuesday. The storm threat continues overnight, so make sure you have everything moved inside that could blow away or be damaged by storms and have multiple ways to get weather warnings overnight. Storm threats include large hail, strong winds, or a brief tornado, especially in eastern Kansas, including Kansas City.<video src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/4-17 RNC HRRR-1713400227391.mp4" controls="true" width="100%"></video><h2>Thursday</h2>The severe potential is more widespread on Thursday with a large area of slight risk (level 2 out of 5) issued in the Southern Plains and into the Midwest and an enhanced risk (level 3 out of 5) in the middle Mississippi Valley. There will be two areas of focus, one in the Midwest leftover from Wednesday's storms and additional storm development in the heat of the day through the Deep South and southern Plains.<video src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/2024-04-17 11-41-00-1713375772352.mp4" controls="true" width="100%"></video>The Enhanced Risk area nearest the center of the low pressure system is where there is an elevated tornado threat. However, the main overall hazards are damaging wind and large hail. Egg-size hail is possible through parts of central Texas.<h2>Friday</h2>As all of this energy and moisture move along the cold front into the Southeast Friday. A marginal threat (level 1 out of 5) of severe weather is sprawled across the southeast from central Alabama into the Carolinas with damaging winds the main threat.<video src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/2024-04-17 13-56-09-1713383791236.mp4" controls="true" width="100%"></video>Stay with WeatherNation for all of your severe weather needs.

Severe Weather Strikes Again Starting Overnight

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WeatherNation Meteorologists

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Summer-like temperatures are expected across the Southeast as a high-pressure system dominates in the Gulf of Mexico. The Tennessee Valley to Florida could break record-high temperatures through the weekend with temperatures soaring into the 80s and close to 90 - about 10-15° average for most cities.<video src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/2024-04-17 04-08-24-1713348531761.mp4" controls="true" width="100%"></video>On Wednesday, the city of Ruskin Florida broke a record high temperature, reaching 90°. The previous record was 89° in 2013.<img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/04-17_ruskin-1713400763256.png">Additional record high temperatures could fall through the weekend across Florida, Georgia, and the Carolinas. Each pink dot represents a city that could tie or beat a record high.<img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/04-17_pot record highzsx-1713400876157.png">Tampa's heat will come first as the city is expected to reach the 90s by Wednesday. The record for Tampa to beat is 89° and the forecast high for this afternoon is 91°.<img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/Screenshot 2024-04-17 040315-1713348318176.png">

Potential Record Heat Along the Gulf Coast

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We're looking at a wet end of the week for the Lone Star State with 3-4" possible. Parts of West Texas suffering from extreme and severe drought conditions could use the rain. Rain can offset the dry conditions and help alleviate the fire concerns that crop up any time the wind does.Related Article - <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.weathernationtv.com/news/looking-ahead-thursdays-severe-threat">Severe Potential on Thursday in Texas, Southern Plains</a><img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/W Texas Drought-1713363623093.png">An upper-level trough will enter the picture late Friday into Saturday. At the surface, a stationary boundary will be in place to help focus that energy into showers and thunderstorms. The wet weather will develop late Friday and last throughout Saturday - so have some indoor backup weekend plans ready.<img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/upper trough weekend-1713363908545.png">The heaviest rain will fall Saturday night, with a few inches possible. All of the heavy rain will lead to a threat of flash flooding on both Friday and Saturday. The Weather Prediction Center [WPC] has issued a slight risk (level 2 out of 4) for the heavy rainfall threat across much of Texas on Saturday. We expect most of these storms to be sub-severe so we aren't worried about large hail or damaging winds, thankfully.<video src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/04-17_rsc-1713399309518.mp4" controls="true" width="100%"></video>Stay with WeatherNation for the latest in your rainy weekend forecast, and the severe weather chances ahead of time too.

Wet Weekend in the Lone Star State

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<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>
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Lucy Bergemann

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If you have been enjoying the Spring warmth in the central U.S., unfortunately, we have bad news for you headed into the weekend. Our latest push of upper-level energy will draw in slightly cooler air for the northern and central Plains starting Thursday following a surface cold front and linger into the weekend. <video src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/2024-04-17 08-24-12-1713364135396.mp4" controls="true" width="100%"></video>The cold air will be most notable during the morning hours in the High Plains when lows drop into the mid and lower 30s across the board. This will only be about 10° below average for many, but given the recent warmth, it will feel colder. <img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/cold temps-1713364391396.jpg">High temperatures will be cool too, especially on Saturday when we only manage the 40s and 50s, which again isn't brutally cold for this time of year, but definitely a change of pace from what we've had lately. <img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/low vs avg-1713364391397.jpg">The cooler air also impacts the southern Plains, as early as Friday behind our cold front with our coldest days on Saturday and Sunday. Highs in Dallas will be about 15° below normal, with a similar fate for Little Rock and Jackson, MS. There is also the opportunity for a few showers in the Southern Plains this weekend, and cloud cover will aid our temperatures in staying cool. <img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/3 day temps south-1713364391400.jpg">Overnight temperatures in Texas will be well above freezing, so we don't have that concern for plants or pipes. Typically the last freeze of the season is mid-April for areas in the central Plains, Texas Panhandle and Appalachia. Don't be surprised if there are a few more cold nights ahead in the Plains before we hit our summer stride. <img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/last freeze-1713364391394.jpg">

Blast of Cold Air Arrives in the Central U.S. this Weekend

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Kevin Schneider

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It’s the soundtrack to the summer. Nature’s noisemakers are set to return in a big way this year as not one, but two sets of periodical cicadas will emerge in the Midwest and Southeast. It is the first time these two specific broods have surfaced together since 1803! This is the first time since 2015 that a 13 year cycle brood emerges at the same year as a 17 year brood.<div data-youtube-video=""><iframe width="640" height="480" allowfullscreen="false" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/o5jJPrP5rfE" start="0"></iframe></div>The southern brood emerges every 13 years and is known as the Brood XIX, the largest brood in the U.S.. The Northern Illinois brood has a period of 17 years, making these two broods overlap uncommon. They will only overlap in central Illinois, where is expected to be the noisest!<img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/Closer look at Illinois locations overlap.mp4_snapshot_00.01.232-1713196589008.jpg"><blockquote>Katie Dana, a researcher with the Illinois Natural History Survey who studies the cicadas says, “We have broods emerging across the U.S. almost every year, but we don’t often have broods emerging at the same time. Just like how birds have different songs, cicadas have different songs...we have over 3,000 different species of cicadas so we have so many different songs.”</blockquote>Periodical Cicadas are large, loud insects with bright red eyes. They live underground for years. Once the cicadas take to the skies, they will be in the air for about 3-4 weeks, mating before laying eggs and reburying themselves for another 13 or 17 years.<img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/Slow zoom east coast brood locations.mp4_snapshot_00.06.391-1713196589005.jpg">Depending on where you live, the double brood emergence could start as soon as April but will happen whenever the ground temperatures reach 64°. According to Katie, “It’s those warm soils that push them out of the ground, but they’re also looking for some moisture. If you have really dry soil, it’s going to make it hard for them to dig out.” Given that we've had some of our warmest winters on record in the Midwest we are looking at the opportunity for earlier emergence of the broods.<img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/Warmest Winter on Record.mp4_snapshot_00.05.538-1713196589007.jpg">If you’re less than thrilled about these beaty-eyed bugs, focus on the positives. They provide extra nutrition for birds and animals and spark a reset for oak trees allowing them to produce more acorns a few years after they emerge. If that’s not enough to get you through... the next time these two broods will be out at the same time won't be for another 221 years, which will give you plenty of time to learn to appreciate the cicada screams.

Double Trouble: Cicadas Take to the Skies this Spring

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Snow is falling in the northern and central Rockies through the middle of this week with accumulations close to 18" for the highest elevations of Colorado, Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming! As a result, winter alerts remain in effect for portions of Wyoming and Montana. Some of the numbers that have come in from some Colorado ski resorts have been impessive over the past 2 days (above). <img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/winter weather alerts-1713351599250.jpg">Snowfall totals for portions of Wyoming, the Tetons, Idaho, and Montana could still reach up to an additional foot through the next day or so.<img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/additional snow-1713351664591.jpg">Snowfall will continue in the high terrain for the next couple of days as northwesterly winds combined with low-pressure development lead to orographic (terrain lift) producing snow showers for the highest peaks.<video src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/2024-04-17 05-06-40-1713352057821.mp4" controls="true" width="100%"></video>If you think it's pretty late in the season to see snowfall, you may be surprised to learn that many cities in the northern Rockies see their average last snowfall in April and May, and we are right on track!<img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2024/04/avg last snow-1713189992904.jpg">

Caitlin Connell

Spring Snow in the Rocky Mountain States

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<img class="alignnone wp-image-97285 size-large" src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2018/09/919A-2-728x408.jpg" alt="Wednesday's Severe Weather Update" width="728" height="408" />

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There is a marginal risk of severe weather in the high plains and upper Midwest, today. This means isolated severe thunderstorms will be possible within the dark green area. The potential for damaging winds around 58 mph exists within some of these storms. There is also a potential of of seeing hail up to an inch in diameter. Last, but certainly not least, a tornado potential also exists for Iowa and Nebraska. Although the percentage looks very low, it is still above zero percent which means it is definitely possible that we might see a tornado, today.

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The threat of storms exists all day long. They started up very early this morning and will continue into our evening hours, tonight. Make sure to stay weather aware throughout the day. Rain could be heavy so ponding on the roads could occur on top of the potential for damaging winds, hail, and tornadoes.

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