Twin States Weather Blog

Weekend on my mind

* Heading out to Newton County to meet with Gary Galloway of the Newton County EMA. We are trying to get all of our EMA friends signed up on Instant Messenger with us, so we can communicate instantly! This will only help both of us give you better service. If you are reading this and are part of an EMA operation in our viewing area, e-mail me and I'll come out to your office and get you set up!

* Details are beginning to emerge about the possibility of a severe weather event this weekend. Here is our current thinking:

Supercell thunderstorms develop over Texas and Louisiana on Saturday and move eastward. These will move into Mississippi Saturday afternoon, tracking across the state. Deep shear and strong instability indicate that tornadoes, hail, and wind will all be possible. The worst threat of severe weather will be along and south of Interstate 20 - places like Quitman, Bay Springs, Newton, Meridian, Waynesboro, York, Butler, and Jackson.

Here is an excerpt from the Storm Prediction Center's Day 3 Outlook:

"FORECAST SOUNDINGS SHOW STRONG VERTICAL SHEAR ACROSS THE REGION WHICH SUGGESTS AN ENVIRONMENT FAVORABLE FOR SUPERCELLS. BACKED LOW-LEVEL WINDS...STRONG 850 MB AND STEEP MID-LEVEL LAPSE RATES WILL INCREASE THE POTENTIAL FOR TORNADOES...LARGE HAIL AND WIND DAMAGE AS A LARGE CLUSTER OF STORMS DEVELOPS SATURDAY AFTERNOON IN E TX/WRN LA AND SPREADS EASTWARD INTO SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI. PORTIONS OF THE OUTLOOK MAY NEED TO BE UPGRADED TO A MODERATE RISK IN LATER OUTLOOKS."

Our thinking on timing and the location of the largest threat of severe weather will change, but here's a quick recap:

Threats: Supercell thunderstorms, with hail, wind, and possibly isolated tornadoes.

When: 2 PM Saturday - Noon Sunday (we'll narrow that down in later posts)

Where: Area-wide, but the area of maximum concern is along and south of I-20.

Important Note: Many churches will be holding Sunrise Services on Easter morning. It is VERY IMPORTANT that every church have a NOAA Weather Radio! Without a weather radio, you have NO WAY of getting the warning! Pastors and church administrators: If you have any questions about getting a weather radio (what kind to get, where to get it, cost, you name it), EMAIL me at josh.johnson@wtok.com.

posted by WTOK Weather Staff @ 9:42 AM