Southern Plains Bracing for Severe Weather Heading Into New Week
Alexis Thornton
Last monthIt has been fairly calm as it relates to severe weather across the country over the last week. The weekend is going to bring a change to this docile weather pattern as the southern Plains sees an influx of energy and moisture that raises the risk of storms. Here is what you need to know about these stormy conditions.
Arrival of Cold Front Sparking Severe Weather in Southern Plains
The weekend began on a dry note across all of Texas and Oklahoma. While residents enjoyed a relatively nice Saturday, the moisture machine began to flow up to the north from the Gulf of Mexico overnight and into Sunday. The rain showers are forecast to take root over eastern Texas and move to the east on Sunday morning, laying the groundwork for severe weather in the region to close out the weekend.
The first threat of severe weather will ignite late in the day Sunday farther to the west thanks to a cold front coming in from New Mexico. The energy associated with this front will pair with the moisture that has been coming up form the Gulf to fuel the development of storms on Sunday evening and into the overnight hours. The eastward movement of the frontal boundary will bring the risk of storms in this direction, amplifying their impacts as the energy circulates.
The line of storms is forecast to move to the east under the cover of darkness. Nocturnal storms are inherently more dangerous as they can fire up unnoticed as people sleep. This is a good time to ensure that all of your severe weather alerts are enabled on your smartphone. You do not want to sleep through any potentially life-saving weather alerts.
Possible impacts of these storm cells on Sunday and Monday include flash flooding, high winds, and hail. While it is not tornado season, you cannot rule out the chance of an isolated twister.