DETROIT – The severe threat that I discussed in yesterday’s article appears to be on track.
UPDATE: Severe thunderstorm watch issued for all of Metro Detroit
A strong cold front will cross the area mid-to-late afternoon -- during the warmest part of the day.
Factor in a warm air mass ahead of the front (temps rising into the low-to-mid 70s -- 21 to 24 degrees Celsius) and strong wind aloft, and it’s likely that some of us will receive damaging wind gusts, hail that could approach one inch, and torrential downpours.
I cannot even rule out an isolated weak tornado.
When to expect storms
Storm timing will be between 2:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m., with the narrow line of storms moving very fast from west to east. The severe threat increases the farther east you are in the area, as you’ll warm up the most this afternoon since the cold front arrives latest for you.
If you are outside this afternoon, I strongly urge you to keep a very close eye on the Local4casters app’s live radar, and remember that our app also alerts you to warnings if you have alerts turned on.
DO NOT WAIT UNTIL IT RAINS TO HEAD INSIDE, AS THE DANGEROUS WIND GUSTS FREQUENTLY RUSH OUT AHEAD OF THE LINE AND HIT *BEFORE* THE RAIN ARRIVES. Also be sure to have your weather radio on.
Once the front passes by, temperatures will crash -- we’ll be in the upper 30s (4 degrees Celsius) by Saturday morning. What a roller coaster we’ll be on the next twenty-four hours. We may have a few scattered showers during the first half of the night, but skies should become partly cloudy by dawn.
Weekend forecast
Partly cloudy on Saturday, with highs only in the upper 40s (9 degrees Celsius).
Increasing clouds Saturday night, with lows in the mid 30s (1 to 2 degrees Celsius).
Mostly cloudy on Sunday and, as I mentioned in yesterday’s article, I think we remain dry for the day. Highs near 50 degrees (10 degrees Celsius).
Next week forecast
We’ll have a close call with some rain-makers that should stay mostly to our south. The first one, however will bring some showers to our area on Monday, with highs near 50 degrees (10 degrees Celsius).
After Monday, I tentatively think that we’ll remain dry for the rest of the week. Highs, however, will remain only near 50 degrees (10 degrees Celsius), with lows in the 30s (1 to 3 degrees Celsius).
Halloween forecast
Right now, I think it’ll be dry for the kids! We should have a mostly sunny Saturday turn into a spooky clear evening, with the kids Trick or Treating in the 40s (7 to 9 degrees Celsius).