While tornadoes may occur further south, heavy snow, sleet, and freezing rain are anticipated to hit sections of the United States this week as a result of a winter storm moving across the central Plains and Upper Midwest.
The storm is anticipated to produce moderate to freezing rain, heavy snow, and sleet by Tuesday in the Central High Plains as it moves northeast into the Great Lakes, according to the National Weather Service.
The meteorological service stated in a forecast update early on Monday that “intense snow rates of 1-2 inches per hour may be accompanied by thunder, especially in southern South Dakota and far southwest Minnesota.” It predicted that severe snowfall of more than 12 inches will swiftly accumulate from the Nebraska Panhandle through southwest Minnesota.
The weather agency said that gusty winds might cause regions of blowing and drifting snow, cover roadways with snow, impair visibility, and result in significant travel risks.
On January 2, 2023, a satellite image of the weather system now over the United States is shown. (NOAA)
According to the National Weather Service, the weather system is also predicted to produce heavy freezing rain to regions of northeastern Nebraska through southern Minnesota. The freezing rain might increase road dangers and result in power outages, it was warned.
The Western Gulf of Mexico moisture is anticipated to proceed northward across the Western Gulf Coast and Lower Mississippi Valley, where it will interact with the Plains front and cause showers and severe thunderstorms on Monday morning, according to the weather center. Over the Lower Mississippi Valley, there is an increased probability of severe thunderstorms from Monday morning to Tuesday morning.
According to the National Weather Service, thunderstorms might produce frequent lightning, strong wind gusts, hail, and “a few tornadoes.”
The meteorological service has issued a small risk of excessive rainfall for portions of the Middle/Lower Mississippi Valley from Monday into Tuesday. Heavy rain is also anticipated in conjunction with thunderstorms.
The concomitant heavy rain will primarily cause localized flash floods, with urban areas, highways, and small streams being the most at risk, according to the weather agency.
Monday afternoon and evening across parts of east Texas, southeastern Oklahoma, Arkansas, and northern Louisiana, there is a higher danger of severe thunderstorms.
Nearly 19 million people live in the storm’s potential path, where they might experience hail, severe wind gusts, flooding rain, and tornadoes.
Through Monday night, there is still a Flood Watch in effect for parts of Arkansas, western Tennessee, northern Louisiana, and east Texas.
Severe storms are predicted to keep moving eastward on Tuesday, wreaking havoc on the Tennessee Valley and the central Gulf Coast.
It follows a “once-in-a-lifetime” snowfall last month that claimed hundreds of lives and was centered in Erie County, New York, which encompasses Buffalo.
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