Tracking a warm and windy Wednesday ahead of severe storms

TONIGHT: Partly cloudy and mild with lows in the lower 60s.

TOMORROW: Windy and warm with highs in the upper 80s to around 90. Severe storms possible by late afternoon into the evening with the threat of damaging winds, 1" hail, and a few tornadoes.

EXTENDED: A warm front lifts north across the region tonight, allowing temperatures to remain mild overnight and winds to increase to 40-45 mph at times during the day. That warm front is expected to park across far northeast Missouri stretching into Illinois and central Indiana, and serve as a focus for initial severe storms Wednesday afternoon. Strong tornadoes will be possible along the front from northeast Missouri through central Illinois near this boundary. Farther west back into Missouri, storms area expected to develop along a cold front and press southeast with time, and damaging winds between 60-70 mph will be the main concern, along with a few tornadoes. Storms are expected to develop after 3:00 p.m. and work southeast through late Wednesday night. Scattered showers and a few storms will be possible through Thursday, keeping temperatures cooler in the upper 70s. Friday looks great as high pressure briefly sets in, but we'll be tracking another round of widespread rain and storms as another system approaches from the Plains over the weekend. We could end up with another 2-3" of rain as this system slowly tracks through Mid-Missouri on Sunday, increasing the flooding risk.