Wind & Rain Threats This Week

Good Sunday evening, everyone! I've been out of town for a few days. I was in Dallas, TX for Raycom Media meetings. Then, was I in Little Rock for AAU basketball. It feels good to dig into some data again this evening!

As you may have seen, the StormTEAM is specifically highlighting Tuesday and Wednesday this week. As we have mentioned, we are now making it easy for you to glance at the 7 Day Forecast to see the greatest threats to Region 8. It's our commitment to give you the FIRST WARNING of the possibilities of any watches, warnings, or advisories:

We have some showers and storms on radar this evening and we have some in the forecast for Monday. But, here are the reasons why we are a little more concerned about Tuesday and Wednesday:

• The WIND on Tuesday could have gusts up to 40 mph. This is not from thunderstorms, but from the pressure differences across Region 8.
• The RAIN on Tuesday night and Wednesday could prompt some flood watches.
• Rain totals for Tuesday night into Wednesday could be in the 1-3" range. (Not as high as some of the internet rumors out there, but still concerning)
• Heavy rain impacts farming, especially in early Spring.

While we are highlighting Tuesday and Wednesday, I don't want you to be overly worried about severe weather. The threat for hail and tornadoes is very low on these days. 

Let me show you a few maps. First, let's talk about Tuesday's wind. The Euro and GFS models are showing possible gusts to 40 mph!:

Most of the rain holds off until Tuesday night. That's when some of the rain could be heavy. Here are the rainfall estimates from both models between now and Thursday. I think they are in pretty good agreement on amounts:

As I mentioned, most of the rain falls on Tuesday night into Wednesday morning. This is the European models outlook of rain amounts between 1AM and 7AM on Wednesday morning:

Plan accordingly and if there are any changes, we will be providing video updates on the Region 8 weather app and we will explain in deeper detail on TV. Have a great week.

Ryan