Aseries of severe storms will threaten parts of the central United Statesover the next couple days, with thunderstorms, high winds, hail and possible tornadoes bringing the greatest risk along a stretch from the southern Plains to the Great Lakes on April 14.
An area including eastern Iowa, northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin was most likely to see large to very large hail, a few tornadoes, including some strong tornadoes, and damaging wind gusts, theStorm Prediction Centersaid. Elsewhere in the Northeast, more severe storms with strong wind gusts are possible.
Major cities including Dallas, Oklahoma City, St. Louis, Kansas City, Des Moines and Chicago are all in the zone to be impacted by severe weather on April 14, according to AccuWeather.
Summer in April?Record-smashing heat wave to scorch eastern US
Repeated downpours through at least the middle of the week will increase the risk of flooding, AccuWeather reported. The storms could impact travel on highways and cause delays at airports. A stretch of more than 1,600 miles could be impacted by severe weather this week, the outlet reported. Some communities could be hit by multiple rounds of storms and downpours, also elevating the risk of flash flooding.
"The atmosphere is primed for storms that can turn violent fast. Destructive hail, damaging wind gusts, flash flooding, and tornadoes are all possible as storms rumble through," said Tyler Roys, AccuWeather senior meteorologist. "Large hail can smash windshields and damage roofs. Strong wind gusts can knock down trees, cut power, and create dangerous travel conditions quickly.”
Lightning, tornadoes and wild storms: See these incredible weather photos
Severe storms to last for multiple days
Forecasters said the storm system will drive multiple days of bad weather. The rounds of weather will bring storms and heavy rainfall as a "daily occurrence during the latter half of each day" in the upper Midwest and Great Lakes region, the National Weather Service said. The storms will generally move from west to east.
In the central and southern Plains, strong to severe thunderstorms and heavy downpours will also be active during the later part of the day and into the overnight hours, the weather service said. They will extend from Missouri northeast into the Midwest.
Advertisement
There is an enhanced risk of severe storms in a portion of the Midwest with a population of over 14 million, including Chicago; Milwaukee and Madison, Wisconsin; Des Moines, Iowa; and Aurora, Illinois, according to the Storm Prediction Center.
Other major cities at risk for severe storms on April 14 include Detroit, Oklahoma City, Kansas City, Missouri; Cleveland, Ohio; and Omaha, Nebraska.
On April 15, the Storm Prediction Center said more risk for large hail, strong wind gusts and tornadoes will take aim across the southern Plains and into the Great Lakes in the afternoon and evening.
Tornadoes reported during April 13 storms
On April 13, there were preliminary reports of tornadoes in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa and Kansas, according to the Storm Prediction Center.
There were also numerous hail reports, from pea-sized in Marseilles, Illinois, to baseball-sized in Nicollet, Minnesota.
In Ottawa, Kansas, a town of about 12,000 in the eastern part of the state, a tornado was reported on April 13. Officialssaidmost of the town was without power and streetlights were not working after storms rolled through on April 13. The fire department asked residents to stay home so first responders could answer calls.
"There are multiple power lines down that you may not see in the dark," the Ottawa Fire Department said the evening of April 13.
Wind gusts damaged the roof and wall of a T-Mobile store in Ottawa, according to a storm report from the weather service.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Tornadoes, thunderstorms threaten central US amid back-to-back storms