A dangerous day is ahead for 51 million people from northern Iowa all the way down to Louisiana where large hail, damaging winds and tornadoes are all possible Friday afternoon and into the overnight.
States at the greatest risk for strong EF2+ long-track tornadoes stretch from northeast Iowa to southern Arkansas and northern Mississippi. This includes cities like Des Moines, Davenport, Little Rock and Memphis.
A tornado watch was issued by the National Weather Service for the entire eastern Iowa, northeast Missouri, northwest Illinois and southwestern Wisconsin. The agency warned that many tornadoes can be expected as well as “widespread hail up to apple size” and wind gusts up to 70 mph.
“Severe weather in the form of damaging wind gusts, large hail, and several tornadoes (some strong) are expected today and tonight between the Midwest and Lower Mississippi Valley,” the National Weather Service warned in a weather update.
A radar indicated at least one tornado in southern Iowa where a tornado warning is in place until 1:30 p.m. C.T.
Severe thunderstorms are also likely with flash flooding possible from the Midwest to the Lower Mississippi Valley on Friday, according to the National Weather Service.
“In order to further highlight the concern, the Storm Prediction Center has issued a Moderate Risk (level 4/5) of severe thunderstorms across parts of southeast Iowa, northwest Illinois, and northeast Missouri, as well as a separate area from northeast Arkansas to far western Kentucky,” the agency said.
Storms will be moving incredibly fast at 55 mph and will go late into the night, making for very dangerous conditions, according to the National Weather Service.
Intense rainfall rates of up to 3 to 5 inches could bring flash floods to some localized areas. The areas with the greatest risk for flooding through Friday night are across “the Ohio, Tennessee, and Lower Mississippi valleys.”
This major storm system is set to spread weather hazards across the central and eastern…
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