Severe Storms Likely Friday Evening/Night
Thursday Night Forecast Update
Thursday Night Forecast Update for March 23rd:
Here is an hour by hour breakdown of what you can expect where you live on Friday evening/night as the next storm system moves through. Severe storms appear to be likely with all severe weather modes being in play. This includes extreme straight line winds and a few tornadoes.
We will stay warm, humid and breezy tonight but should stay dry. Storm chances increase into the evening hours on Friday and hang around into the early morning hours on Saturday. Forecast models are beginning to come into an agreement with the timing of the severe weather threat on Friday. Storms will approach the Mississippi River between 6-7pm, move through Jackson between 8-10pm and cross the Tennessee River between 11pm-1am.
Please stay weather aware as we are expecting some potent storms that will more that likely be up severe storm criteria or 60 MPH winds, quarter size hail and possible tornadoes. catch the latest up to the minute forecast thoughts and details as to what you can expect, coming up here.
With the threat for severe weather coming back on Friday, I thought I would just give everyone a reminder that our most dangerous weather typically occurs during the springtime.
Tuesday marked the 71st anniversary of the deadly tornado outbreak that claimed 233 lives including 23 in Chester county in 1952.
We will be watching the situation closely in the 7 Storm Team Weather Center as the system gets closer.
TONIGHT:
Thursday was a mostly dry day but we can’t rule out a few showers late Thursday night into Friday morning but do not expect much at all. Thursday was also a very Spring like warm and humid day with high temperatures reaching the mid 70s. The winds were breezy at times and will continue to be steady tonight. Skies will be partly cloudy for most of the night. Thursday night lows will also be warm and only fall down to the mid 60s.
FRIDAY:
Highs on Friday will reach the low to mid 70s and mostly cloudy skies are likely. There could be some early day showers but it will be the late stuff that we need to be more concerned about. The winds will be gusty at times and continue out of the southwest until Saturday morning when the front passes. Friday night lows will drop back to the low 50s.
Friday will bring a return of the thunderstorms to West Tennessee and there will be a threat for severe storms into the evening and nighttime hours. The main severe weather threat looks to be in our southern counties but we will be watching the situation closely this week in the 7 Storm Team Weather Center. Right now we are under a slight (3/5) risk and could be upgraded to a (4/5) but that seems unlikely as of now.
The storms will start in the late evening hours as early as 6PM but there is also a chance they do not show up until closer to 10pm. The later the storms show up, the longer they will be lingering overnight into Friday morning.
There are some flooding concerns with this system but most of the rain amounts over 3″ will stay just to our north into Kentucky and long the Ohio River. There still we be a chance for some isolated flash flooding though in West Tennessee as well, especially for locations that are hit with more that one storm Friday night.
THE WEEKEND:
The first weekend on Spring will be borderline Spring like. Expect mostly sunny skies this weekend across West Tennessee. Highs will reach the low to mid 60s on Saturday and upper 60s or low 70s on Sunday. Temperatures will be warmer on Sunday as the northwest winds on Saturday will be replaced by southeast winds. Saturday night will be a bit chilly with morning lows falling down to the mid 40s for Sunday morning. Sunday night will be a bit warmer due to the southerly winds and only fall down to low 50s again. There could be some showers trying to return as we kick off next week as well.
NEXT WEEK:
We are expecting a spring like week next week in West Tennessee with highs typically being in the 60s with lows in the 40s. Monday will make it up to around 70° into the afternoon but a weak front will slide through late Monday into Tuesday cooling down the temps a bit. Highs on Tuesday will be around 60° and mid 60s will return on Wednesday. There is a chance for a few showers Monday night into Tuesday morning as the front passes but we are not expecting much at all from that system currently. The winds will change from the west on Monday, to the north on Tuesday and then back to the south again by Wednesday. If the skies clear out Wednesday morning we have a chance to drop back down in the mid 30s, but as of now we are expecting to stay above freezing but it will be close. There is another shot for some storm activity next Thursday.
FINAL THOUGHT:
After a very warm month of February, March is turning out to be the exact opposite and being below normal. The next chance for rain and storms is coming on Friday, no winter storms are currently in the forecast but in will be a little cooler again this weekend. You need to stay weather aware to changing weather patterns and monitor the forecasts closely. We got you covered in the WBBJ 7 Storm Team Weather Center as always.
For tips on preparing for the storms, click here. To download the WBBJ 7 Weather app, click here.
Storm Team Chief Meteorologist
Joel Barnes
Facebook: @JoelBarnesWeather
Twitter: @JoelBarnes13
Instagram: @joelbarnes13
