Biggest Storm Threat in Months Coming on Saturday
WBBJ 7 Forecast Update
WBBJ 7 Forecast Update:
STORM THREAT ON SATURDAY! A humid and charged up atmosphere will be in place Saturday across West Tennessee. A low pressure system and cold front will move through sparking up some intense storms between 2pm and 8pm. The storms will be moving quickly to the northeast and they will be strong. Gusty winds will be the main threat but a tornado or two and some hail could also develop with some of the stronger cells.. We will have the latest breakdown of the event and the rest of your forecast coming up here.
TONIGHT:
Thursday was another dry day packed full with sunshine across West Tennessee. The winds begun to change direction as the day progresses and came out of the southwest. The winds were light but will begin to pick up speed again on Friday. The southwest breeze though warmed West Tennessee back up to around the 60° mark by the afternoon. Thursday night lows will be cool but we should stay out of the 30s with overnight lows dipping into the low 40s to start your Friday.
FRIDAY:
Friday is going to be a mild, dry day and a transition day between two storm systems. The winds will pick up in the afternoon and expect 10-15 MPH southwest winds with higher gusts late in the day as Saturday’s storm system begins to get a little closer. Highs on Friday will make it up to around 60° with some of us reaching the low 60s. We will see clouds increasing late in the day but should start the day with plenty of sunshine. Friday night lows will stay warm due to the increase in clouds and winds and Saturday morning will start in the mid 50s. Rain is not in the forecast on Friday.
THE WEEKEND:
It will be a warm and humid start to the weekend as gusty southerly winds will increase the dew point well into the 50s juicing up the atmosphere just in time for an approaching low pressure system. This setup will look to bring severe weather back to the Mid South and possibly West Tennessee during the day on Saturday.
We need to stay weather aware as the potential for severe weather with this system looks to be the highest we have seen in a few months for some areas. The Storm Prediction Center has put all of West Tennessee Under a (1 & 2 out of 5) marginal and slight risk for severe storms. Straight line winds appear to be the main threat but up to nickel size hail and a tornado or two cannot be ruled out.
Highs on Saturday will make it into the mid 60s with Saturday night lows dropping to the upper 30s behind the front. The showers may linger into early Sunday morning but most of us will be dry by Sunday afternoon. Sunday highs will only make it up to the mid to upper 40s and Sunday night lows will dip down near or below freezing again. The winds will be windy on Saturday out of the south and remain a bit breezy on Sunday and come out of the northwest. By the time the rain moves out Sunday morning, a widespread 1-2″ of rain will have moved through helping out big-time with the current drought conditions across the region.
NEXT WEEK:
Next week will start out cool and below normal on Monday with highs only reaching the low to mid 50s, after starting out in the low 30s. We are expecting mostly sunny skies on Monday but a few more clouds will move in during the middle the week. The next front could move through on Wednesday. Highs on Tuesday and Wednesday will make it back up to the upper 50s or low 60s with morning lows staying in the mid 30s. The winds are forecast to come out of the south or southwest early in the week until the mid week front passes. The front as of now does not look impressive and we are not expecting much if any rain from that system as of now.
FINAL THOUGHT:
The greatest threat for severe weather in a few months looks to be heading for the Mid South this weekend. As of now it appears the greatest threat will be from Memphis to the southwest into Arkansas but we are still a few days out and the forecast projected path of this system could change. It is also a very strong and big system, so although we may not get the worst of it, strong storms still look likely on Saturday. Severe weather for us looks more likely than not as of now on Saturday. Please stay weather aware and monitor the forecast this week as the storm system gets closer.
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
