Severe Weather Threat In South As Wind, Snow Target Parts Of Plains, Midwest, East This Weekend

Where, When Severe Storms Can Impact Friday Plans

A storm system will bring another day of severe weather to parts of the South, snow from the Rockies and parts of the Plains to the Great Lakes and strong winds through the Midwest and East into this weekend.

After Thursday brought at least one tornado and wind gusts over 80 mph across the Central Plains, more severe weather is in store.

This scenario will come in two rounds. Let's lay out the timing of this and the details on where the threat of severe weather, heavy rain, snow and wind are in play.

Forecast Timing

Friday: Snow may linger from the central and southern Rockies into parts of the High Plains from southern Colorado and northern New Mexico into western Kansas and the Panhandles of Oklahoma and Texas. Thunderstorms will become more numerous in parts of the South, from eastern Texas to the Tennessee Valley. Some rain showers will spread as far north as upstate New York and even New England.

Saturday: Snow is expected in parts of the western Great Lakes and upper Midwest, while more soaking rain spreads into the East as far north as parts of New England and upstate New York. Strong wind gusts are possible in much of the Midwest and East. Thunderstorms will linger in parts of the Southeast and could develop as far north as the mid-Atlantic ahead of the cold front.

Sunday: Wind will likely be the only remaining concern in the Midwest and East. Some showers may linger along parts of the East Coast, particularly eastern New England, especially in the morning. Wrap-around snow showers may linger from parts of the Great Lakes to the Appalachians, upstate New York and northern New England.

(MAPS: Daily US Forecast Rain, Snow Areas)

Potential Impacts

Severe Threat

On Friday, the threat shifts to the Lower Mississippi Valley and other parts of the South, in the area shown in the map below. Cities in the level 2-out-of-5 threat include Birmingham, Alabama; Jackson, Mississippi; and Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

That more elevated threat could last into Friday night or early Saturday in other parts of the Deep South and Tennessee Valley.

Some isolated strong to severe thunderstorms with strong wind gusts are possible Saturday afternoon as far east as parts of the Carolinas and southern Virginia.

(MORE: What You Should Know About Severe Weather)

Snow, Heavy Rain

Locally heavy rain is most likely Friday into early Saturday in the Deep South, where local flash flooding is possible. Flood watches are in place from Middle Tennessee to southern Louisiana.

Wind, Colder Air

Some strong wind gusts over 40 mph are possible in parts of the Midwest and East Thursday and Friday associated with the first round of this storm system.

Later Saturday, strong winds with gusts occasionally over 40 mph, are possible throughout the Plains, Midwest, and increasingly the East.

These strong winds will continue in the Midwest and East Sunday.

Downed tree limbs and power outages are possible for some. In areas of snowfall, these winds could lead to reduced visibility and challenging driving conditions.

Some colder air will be dragged behind the storm into the Midwest, South and East, but it won't be bitterly cold, nor will it last long.

(MAPS: 10-Day US Forecast Highs/Lows)

What Has Happened So Far

Severe thunderstorms started early Thursday morning in the Southern Plains. The first storms produced wind gusts to 60 mph and penny size hail in the Oklahoma City metro area.

Then, a tornado was confirmed by Doppler radar near Purcell, Oklahoma, around 7:30 a.m. CT along a line of severe thunderstorms. One semi was blown over on Interstate 35 and some structures were damaged.

The highest wind gust was a gust to 88 mph in Wynona, Oklahoma, which resulted in roof damage to one home and some shop buildings were also damaged. An 81 mph gust was also recorded near Independence, Kansas, with power lines, poles and several outbuildings downed.

Jonathan Erdman is a senior meteorologist at weather.com and has been covering national and international weather since 1996. Extreme and bizarre weather are his favorite topics. Reach out to him on Bluesky, X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook.