A storm system swinging east along the Gulf Coast states through Monday will bring the risk of heavy rain, severe weather and travel impacts.
AccuWeather meteorologists warn that as this feature persists across Southeastern states through the end of the weekend, rounds of strong to severe thunderstorms could develop across part of the Florida peninsula putting residents at risk for heavy rain and isolated tornadoes from Jacksonville to Orlando.
Heavy rain until the end of the weekend
As the center of the storm moves across Florida through Sunday night, a band of showers and thunderstorms will spread across the region. Flooding issues could develop as many areas accumulate between 1-2 inches of rain through the end of the weekend, with locally higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
Floridians enjoyed a good start to the weekend on Saturday, but will see a noticeable turn in the weather by Sunday morning. The high pressure area that promoted dry weather and sunny skies at the start of the weekend has left the region and has been replaced by a moisture-packed storm. In cities like Orlando and Jacksonville, daytime temperatures dropped by 3-6 degrees Fahrenheit from Saturday to Sunday.
Forecasters say that after the first round of storms that swept through the area Sunday morning, there could be more rounds of severe thunderstorms associated with the storm's development Sunday afternoon.
“An initial wave of storms could develop during the morning in Florida, then things could calm down for a few hours and destabilize before another round of storms rages throughout the afternoon,” AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Adam Doty noted.
In Miami, wind gusts of 67 mph were reported Sunday morning as storms continued. Early Sunday afternoon, storms with periodic signatures began to develop around locations east of Tallahassee, Florida, prompting a tornado warning to be issued.
Threat of damaging winds and isolated tornadoes
Winds will pick up from Alabama to South Carolina later this weekend, with wind speeds increasing to 25-30 mph. In strong to severe thunderstorms, locally damaging winds across the Florida Peninsula can reach 50-60 mph with an AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 70 mph.
In addition to locally damaging winds, AccuWeather meteorologists are also warning that this storm preparation could lead to the formation of isolated tornadoes and tornadoes.
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“Residents along the Florida coast will need to be careful of water hoses moving on shore. These conditions can develop quickly with little warning time, and it's always important to have a severe weather plan,” AccuWeather Meteorologist Alex Da Silva explained.
DaSilva added that the threat of hail across Central Florida will be zero on Sunday as thunderstorms move through the state. However, hailstones larger than 1 inch in diameter will not be as likely in this area as small hailstones.
Periods of rain and thunderstorms will continue into the overnight hours Sunday across the Southeast, increasing the risk of flash flooding. By Monday morning, the center of the storm will shift off the east coast of Florida, while continuing to spread pockets of moisture into parts of Florida, Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina.
Rain and showers will continue from south of Mississippi to South Carolina as the storm gradually moves eastward. By Monday evening, the only locations that may still experience storm impacts may be those directly along the East Florida coast.
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Although by Monday evening, any remaining showers could be light in nature. The primary impacts that will last longer will be gusty winds across the Southeast, which could intensify throughout the day Monday from the Carolinas to eastern Florida.
High pressure is on track to return by Tuesday across the Mississippi and Tennessee valleys, which will promote warmer conditions and plenty of sunshine. Some rain and clouds could affect far Southeast Florida on Tuesday, but the majority of the state can expect drier conditions than at the end of the weekend.
Dry conditions will persist across the Southeast through late week, but a cold front could approach the region by late Thursday and bring another round of rain to the Gulf Coast states.
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