Powerful Storm System to Bring Tornado Outbreak, Snow This Week

February 22,2016
A powerful low pressure system will bring a potential outbreak of severe storms and tornadoes to the South for the start of this week. The same area of low pressure will deliver a swath of snow and strong winds to the Midwest and Great Lakes.
Here's what to expect from this storm system into midweek.

Severe Storm, Tornado Threat in the South

Starting Monday night, the chance for severe storms will begin to increase in the South, mainly in central and south Texas with large hail being the primary concern.
Then, an outbreak of severe thunderstorms and tornadoes is expected to spread through the South Tuesday into Wednesday.
On Tuesday and Tuesday night, severe storms will target the Gulf Coast states, from southeast Texas into parts of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and the western Florida panhandle. Tornadoes, damaging wind gusts and large hail are all possible threats from those storms.
The TOR:CON for Tuesday and Tuesday night has been raised to 6 out of 10 in parts of southern Louisiana, southern Mississippi, southern Alabama and the western Florida panhandle, according to Dr. Greg Forbes of The Weather Channel. This means there is a 60 percent chance of a tornado within 50 miles of any location in the specified areas.

Tuesday's Forecast

Another round of severe thunderstorms will target parts of the Southeast and southern mid-Atlantic – from northern Florida to the Carolinas, Virginia and southern Maryland – on Wednesday. Damaging wind gusts will be the main concern, but some tornadoes are also possible.
For more details on this potential outbreak of severe storms and tornadoes, see our full article at the link below.
(MORE: Severe Storms Target the South)

Wednesday's Thunderstorm Forecast

Wintry, Windy Side of the Storm

The wintry side of this storm will bring snow and gusty winds to parts of the Rockies, Midwest, Great Lakes and Appalachians the next few days.
Initially, there will be modest amounts of snow in parts of the Rockies and adjacent Highs Plains Monday night through Tuesday.
The area of low pressure will then intensify as it tracks from the southern Plains to the eastern Great Lakes, where there should be just enough cold air for snow or rain changing to snow to develop Tuesday night through Wednesday night.
Right now, it looks like there will be a narrow band of significant accumulating snow in portions of the Midwest and Great Lakes, potentially impacting locations from the Ozarks to portions southeast Missouri, Illinois, Indiana and Michigan. However, the exact placement of that heavier band will depend on where we see the greatest overlap between the available cold air and moisture on the northwest side of where the area of low pressure tracks. Strong winds will also develop, which may lead to sharply reduced visibility later Wednesday or Wednesday night in some areas.

Snowfall Potential Through Thursday

Accumulating snow will also spread into parts of the Ohio Valley and the Appalachians as the storm advances east.
Portions of New England and interior areas of northern Pennsylvania and New York may also see a wintry mix Tuesday night into Wednesday before changing to rain.
For more details on the wintry side of this storm, click the link below.
(MORE: Winter Storm to Bring Snow)

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