Severe weather chance remains in play through the mid-week

Our threat for some significant severe weather is still on the table for Central and Eastern Kentucky now through early Thursday morning as a series of storm systems move through the Ohio Valley. While certain factors could suppress some of the storm development, the dynamics are in place for a legitimate severe weather event especially Wednesday and Wednesday night. All modes of severe weather will be possible including tornadoes and large hail.

The Storm Prediction Center has a Level 3 risk (out of 5) for Central Kentucky with a Level 2 risk for Southern and Southeastern Kentucky heading into Tuesday evening and overnight. The tornado threat appears to be highest under the Level 3 umbrella with damaging winds and some larger hail being the primary threat for much of the rest of the area. If we see storms sustain their strength overnight it can be particularly dangerous while folks are sleeping so make sure you have a way to get alerts/warnings BOTH Tuesday night and Wednesday night.

Based on the latest data, we may have a brief lull on Wednesday morning which isn’t necessarily a good thing since that would help destabilize the atmosphere easily with all the warm and humid air expected to be in place. Any storms that develop Wednesday afternoon could easily become severe so we’ll watch for that potential. The Storm Prediction Center has all of Central and Eastern Kentucky in a Level 3 risk (out of 5). Ironically the elevated tornado risk for Wednesday is trending farther west and southwest although we can’t let our guard down. While we concentrate on the tornado potential with many of these events, we can’t forget about the large hail potential and flash flood threat through the reminder of this event given how problematic an damaging those modes of severe weather can be, especially given the multiple rounds of heavy rain we could see.

Once the front clears the area on Thursday other than a few showers and rumbles of thunder, the big story will be cooler air as we head into the Mother’s Day weekend. Afternoon highs will only top out in the mid to upper 60s with a fast moving weak front potentially bring a few showers to the area on Saturday. Otherwise we will play optimistic for Mother’s Day with mainly dry condition Sunday and highs  right around 70 degrees.

ABC 36 HOUR FORECAST
TUESDAY NIGHT: Mild with scattered storms, some severe. Lows in the mid-60s.
WEDNESDAY: Warm and humid, severe storms possible. Highs in the low to mid-80s.
WEDNESDAY NIGHT: More strong storms possible. Lows in the low-60s.