Sumter Co Warning
The Severe Thunderstorm Warning for Sumter County has been allowed to expire at 7:00 pm. The storm has weakend to below severe limits. We will continue to watch radar closely, however with the sun setting, we expect the storms to weaken in intensity.
Strong Storms
Sorry to be a little tardy on the post...was handling a few TV duties...
A severe thunderstorm rolled through the Meridian and Lauderdale County areas the past hour bringing heavy rain and flooding to the area. We have had reports of hail across the area including golf ball sized hail at Bonita Lakes Mall. The Severe Thunderstorm Warning was dropped and it appears as if the storms are beginning a downward trend now that the sun is setting.
The storm has moved south and is in Clarke County right now bringing heavy rain, frequent lightning, small hail, and gusty winds to our friends in Quitman. We expect these storms to continue weakening but will watch the radar through the rest of the evening!
Unfortunately, the severe weather has hampered my plans to attend the rodeo as part of WTOK Night. I will, however, try to make it out there tomorrow evening!
If you watched our 6pm news, you probably noticed a few changes. Lightning hit either on or very near the building and it knocked down a whole wall of televisions, including our weather graphics system. Our great engineers rigged things up quickly so we could at least show the graphics, albeit on full screen! I certainly appreciate their help!
Severe Thunderstorm Warnings
A Severe Thunderstorm Warning is in effect for Southern Scott and Smith Counties until 5:00 pm CDT. This storm was located from near Forest to near Mize, moving south at 15 mph. The main threats are Penny size hail and winds in excess of 60 mph.
Storms will continue to pulse up and down and more storms may reach severe limits during the evening. We will continue to watch radar closely!
Irene Upgraded
Irene has been upgraded to a Tropical Storm. It now has winds of 40 mph and continues to look more impressive on satellite. We do expect Irene to continue strengthening as it moves into a more favorable environment in the Atlantic. Right now it looks to head towards the Carolinas, but it is still too early to tell where and if it will make landfall.
We expect more rain chances tomorrow afternoon, however it will not be an all day rain event. Temperatures will warm up to the middle 90s for the next several days with gradually decreasing rain chances as we head towards the weekend.
Raining Cats and Dogs...
* Heavy rain and thunderstorms continue to affect parts of the area - mainly Newton and Neshoba counties...No severe thunderstorm warnings, but still a load of heavy rain and frequent lightning..
* The storms will continue diving southwest, bringing heavy rain and frequent lightning in their paths. Heaviest rain right now is along the Highway 15 corridor, from roughly Burnside in Neshoba County to Decatur in Newton County.
* Will continue to watch the radar...Tune in tonight at 10pm for a complete forecast update!
Heavy Storms...
* Very heavy rain continuing across parts of Clarke and Lauderdale counties this afternoon. Radar estimates that some portions of central Clarke county have seen near 2 inches of rain! This rain is accompanied by some very dangerous thunder and lightning, so be sure to stay inside if you can hear thunder. If you hear thunder, you are close enough to be struck by lightning!
* These storms will continue to EVER so slowly drift from the east towards the west over the next few hours. Be sure to SLOW DOWN if you run into some heavy rain!
* Watching Irene...Tropical Depression Irene continues to move through the Atlantic...It's having a hard time getting its act together, mainly due to unfavorable winds aloft and interaction with some dry air. But, Irene is going to eventually move into an area that's more favorable for development. The bottom line is that Irene is a long way from land, but we must continue to monitor it. I would imagine our friends from Miami northward to Wilmington, NC will be antsy as Irene continues westward...
* Vacation time! I'm heading out late tonight for the Alabama Gulf Coast! Shrimp, sunshine, and plenty of fun...I might even try to see if I can still hit a golf ball somewhat straight! Charles Daniel will cover the 5 and 6pm newscasts, and Renny Vandewege will be in each night with your 10pm forecast...Be sure to stay tuned for the latest on Irene, thunderstorms, and all of our active weather!
Status Quo...
* Still watching that pesky upper air low over Alabama. It's been responsible for our increased rain chances lately, as it continues to slowly weaken. But, a weak upper air trough will slide in from the Arklatex, and this and the stubborn upper low over Alabama will likely be enough to support a few scattered showers and thunderstorms tomorrow and Wednesday.
* By later this week, rain chances should begin to diminish a bit. Temperatures will be hot, but nothing out of the ordinary for August - highs in the lower 90's, lows in the 70's. We have been fortunate this summer; temperatures have rarely gotten above 95 degrees. In fact, our hottest temperature so far this year is 96 degrees.
* Watching the tropics...Harvey is heading out to sea, we wish him a calm voyage over the northern Atlantic. Irene is a bit more wishy-washy; she just can't make up her mind. Indications are that Irene may curve out to sea, but there is also a chance that steering currents will weaken and Irene will just drift around for a few days. Certainly going to make our friends in Bermuda antsy.
* Vacation coming soon...I'll be heading down to the Alabama Gulf Coast early Wednesday morning and spending the rest of the week there with some close friends...Should be a fantastic time - get some rest and relaxation in before school visits and secondary severe weather season begins.
Sunday Night...
I hope you have enjoyed your weekend! That annoying upper level low that we've been talking about now for about 8 or 9 days is slowly weakening and will be less and less influential as we head on through the week. But right on its heals is an upper level shortwave trough, or a pocket of cooler air aloft, that will head in our area. As a result, this disturbance, combined with a lot of moisture at the surface, will lead to showers and thunderstorms through Weds. The main threat of rain appears to be south of I-20, but all locations will see a threat of rain. Some of these thunderstorms could be on the strong side, with heavy rain, frequent lightning, and gusty winds being the main threats.
Temperatures will continue to stay a few degrees normal, but we will gradually warm up as we begin to dry out towards the latter parts of the week! Have a great week!!
