Lifestyles

Severe storms to rip through north-central US late Thursday

Renee Duff # weather
north_central

Residents across the north-central United States will need to be on alert for damaging thunderstorms to erupt on Thursday afternoon and evening.

The threat for severe weather will also extend into a portion of southeastern Manitoba, including Winnipeg, and southwestern Ontario.

A surge of warmth and moisture ahead of an approaching system will kick the storms into gear.

“Severe thunderstorms will move through the northern Plains Thursday afternoon and evening,”
said AccuWeather Meteorologist Brett Edwards.

So far this spring, severe weather events have largely stayed to the south and west of Minnesota, but the state will be right in the heart of the threat zone late Thursday.

The worst of the storms may stay to the north and west of downtown Minneapolis, but people in the city should still be ready to seek shelter at the first rumble of thunder and face slowdowns on the roadways.

While Edwards does not anticipate a widespread outbreak of severe weather, he warned that any areas that do get impacted can expect damaging wind gusts, hail and torrential downpours.

“Downed power lines and tree limbs are possible in the worst storms,”
Edwards said.

People traveling on secondary roads should be wary of these hazards, as well as be prepared to face reduced visibility from the downpours. Some roads may also be covered by hail.

Early holiday travelers could be slowed on stretches of interstates 29, 35, 80, 90 and 94.

Edwards is concerned that a separate zone of feisty storms may take shape farther south over western and northern Kansas on Thursday evening and continue into the overnight hours. Similar to the storms farther north, gusty winds, hail and blinding downpours will be the most widespread impacts.

There will be a lower risk of organized severe weather on Friday, though a few storms may turn locally heavy and gusty across the central Plains and upper Mississippi Valley to close out the workweek.

Northern Plains heat 5.24 AM

The passage of the storms will not work to whisk away the warmth.

In fact, the hottest stretch of weather so far this season awaits during the holiday weekend.

Temperatures in Minneapolis; Fargo, North Dakota; Sioux Falls and Aberdeen, South Dakota; Omaha, Nebraska; and Des Moines, Iowa, will all soar well into the 90s Fahrenheit and challenge record highs.