Plenty of wind and some rain on tap through the mid-week

It was a milder Tuesday across Central and Eastern Kentucky with some sunshine and breezy conditions as a strong storm system approached from the west. Winds out of the southwest gusted over 30 miles per hour at times, helping to push milder air into the region as afternoon highs surged into the mid-60s in most locations. These strong winds will be a prelude of things to come into the mid-week.

As the cold front pushes eastward late Tuesday night and into early Wednesday, the chances of showers and a few thunderstorms should increase across the commonwealth. Winds will pick up even more with gusts 45 to 50 miles per hour at times so a Wind Advisory has been hoisted for all of Central and Eastern Kentucky through Wednesday with a High Wind Warning for a few counties in the mountains along the Kentucky/Virginia border. While organized severe weather isn’t expected, a few storms could potentially be strong especially given the gradient wind gusts will be so high and not far off the wind threshold for severe thunderstorms.

Once the front moves through, temperatures will take a tumble so after readings in the 50s early, we’ll drop into the upper 30s and low 40s by the end of the day. As the upper level trough swings through Wednesday afternoon, expect a second round of strong winds with gusts over 45 miles per hour along with some showers mixed in with a few snowflakes as colder air filters into the area.

Some of the snow showers could produce some heavier bursts and reduce visibility into Wednesday evening/overnight so keep that in mind. With colder temperatures and stiff northwest breeze, wind chills will come into play early Thursday with our “feel-like” temperatures down into the teens during the morning hours. Any snow showers into Thursday should have minimal impacts with some accumulations on the grassy areas and elevated surfaces, especially in the eastern mountains. It will still be breezy Thursday afternoon with highs in the mid-40s before winds finally begin to back down as we close out the week.

A weak system will approach the area late Friday and for the first half of the weekend so temperatures will rebound nicely with highs back in the mid-50s. Our best window for a few scattered showers will be Friday night and into Saturday but it should be a wash-out. Another quick shot of cooler air is in store for us Sunday with highs back into the mid-40s but the good news is that it looks dry and milder heading into early next week with another round of spring-like air set to move into the Ohio Valley.

Tuesday Night: Windy with rain and a few storms. Lows in the low-50s.

Wednesday: Breezy and turning colder, rain showers to snow showers by evening. Highs in the low-50s early falling into the upper 30s late.

Wednesday Night: Breezy and cold with a few snow showers. Low in the low-30s.

Stay with the ABC 36 Storm Team for the latest updates, and have a great evening!