Track a cool evening before storm chances return Wednesday through the weekend

TODAY: Tuesday is sunny and breezy. Northwest winds will be sustained near 20 mph this afternoon, gusting to 30 mph at times. This and some dry air will promote dangerous fire conditions.

TONIGHT: Skies will remain clear overnight. Temperatures fall to the low 40s and upper 30s. Winds shift from the south by sunrise.

EXTENDED: South winds promote a warmer day on Wednesday, with highs expected near 70. Wednesday night through Thursday morning, a warm front will lift into the region. This could send a shower or sprinkle through the region by the afternoon, ahead of the front, but most of the day looks dry. Better rain will come early Thursday along the warm front. Thursday morning storms will be elevated in nature, limiting their severe threat, but hail looks to be possible with the strongest storms. You may want to park in the garage if you can Wednesday night. Highs on Thursday will climb into the upper 70s. The combo of growing instability and shear to our north near northwestern Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, and Iowa will bring a chance for severe storms in that region. Depending on the track of the low pressure tied to the warm front, and the positioning of the low level jet associated, we could see another round of storms Thursday night into Friday morning, but it currently looks like we may see these miss us to the north. The cold front will nudge in Friday and stall. This will bring a chance for storms on Friday, some of which may be strong if conditions align properly. We could see some strong storms, or we could just see a copious amount rain. Either way, storms are likely Friday evening, after a dry start. More wet weather is expected over Easter Weekend, including both Saturday and Sunday. Mid-Missouri has another chance to pick up several inches of rainfall through the week.