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New rounds of severe thunderstorms and life-threatening, potentially catastrophic, flooding risks are brewing in the central and eastern United States Tuesday, putting more than 50 million people at risk of dangerous weather this week. The threats come on the heels of Monday’s storms, which unleashed damaging wind gusts, hail bigger than baseballs and tornadoes. Some of Monday night’s storms were ongoing Tuesday morning in parts of Oklahoma, prompting multiple severe thunderstorm warnings and a flash flood warning for Oklahoma City.
More of the same is expected to unfold in multiple states Tuesday. A massive, 1,800-mile stretch of the country from West Texas to Vermont is within a level 2-of-5 risk of severe thunderstorms on Tuesday, according to the Storm Prediction Center. Two smaller but more significant level 3-of-5 risks are in place for parts of Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York and parts of Texas and Oklahoma.
Multiple rounds of storms will move through the Southern Plains Tuesday. The first round was ongoing Tuesday morning from northern Texas to southern Kansas. Additional strong to severe storms are possible throughout the day, with the strongest storms possible by the evening.
Storms in this area could produce large hail, damaging winds and tornadoes. They could also dump rounds of heavy rain, putting the risk of dangerous flooding on the table in what forecasters warn could become a multi-day flood event. A level 3-of-4 risk of flooding rain is in place for parts of northern Texas and much of Oklahoma – including Oklahoma City and Tulsa – according to the Weather Prediction Center.
The area is primed for widespread flash flooding that could become life-threatening in some instances, the WPC warned. Rounds of heavy rain over the past few weeks have drenched the ground and made it vulnerable to flooding as the soil won’t be able to soak up any excess moisture. In Oklahoma, flash flooding from storms the weekend prior prompted high-water rescues and left at least five people dead .
Flash flooding was already ongoing in the Oklahoma City area Tuesday morning, and the situation will only deteriorate there and in nearby areas as additional storms hit the area. Southwest Oklahoma could experience “locally catastrophic ” flooding, the National Weather Service warned. Severe thunderstorms are also possible for parts of the Mississippi Valley, Midwest and Northeast on Tuesday.
Storms in parts of Missouri and Arkansas are possible throughout much of the day with any storms farther north and east more likely to begin in the afternoon. Storms that develop farther north Tuesday afternoon will likely start in southern Ontario, Canada, and then track into parts of Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York in the evening. Damaging wind gusts are the main threat with these storms, but some could drop large, egg-sized hail and tornadoes.
Stormy weather and periods of heavy rain will persist Wednesday, with a level 3-of-4 risk of flooding rainfall in place for parts of Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri and Arkansas. A few severe thunderstorms are possible in the Southern Plains on Wednesday, but widespread chances of damaging storms fade for the rest of the week..
