At least 18 US states in the central part of the country in will face a long duration of sustained severe weather outbreak starting on Thursday and continuing well into next week, while California and nearby states brace for unusually heavy rainfall and snow.
Dangerous storms and potential tornadoes are lurking as the nation’s midsection, an 800,000 mile region, braces for days of potentially dangerous thunderstorms. The severe weather outbreak will begin on Thursday and will continue well into next week. By Friday and into the weekend, at least 18 states will be affected.
Beginning on Thursday: Nebraska, Idaho, Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Indiana are all at risk of severe weather.
Late Friday: Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, Wisconsin and Iowa are all under severe weather threat that will include large hail, flooding downpours, dangerous wind gusts, and tornadoes.
Later in the week, the storms will move northeast affecting Kentucky, the Virginias, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, and all of the New England states. The storm will also continue to linger over Texas, Kansas, Nebraska, the Dakotas, Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin.
From San Francisco to San Diego, as well as neighboring states, the West coast will be pounded with unusually heavy rainfall that could bring the threat of flash flooding and mudslides to parts of the Golden State.
Neighboring states will also pick up some of the heavy rain that will migrate East to Nevada, portions of Utah, and Oregon to the north.
In the higher elevations, snow is expected to reach a potential of 12 inches at levels of 5,000-6,000 feet in the high country of the Sierra, including Interstate 80 and Donner Pass, and could reach as much as 24 inches at elevations of 7,000 feet and higher.
Later in the week, the rain will move further north expanding into Washington, Idaho, Montana, Nebraska, and eastward into Colorado and New Mexico.
