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Weather Alert Day: Severe threat diminishing tonight

WEDNESDAY LATE AFTERNOON UPDATE:

The severe weather threat continues to wane this afternoon with scattered showers and storms showing weak rotation for areas just west of St. Louis. We'll still see the potential of isolated storms with heavy rain into this evening, but the severe weather threat will be low with cells after 7:00 p.m.

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The ABC 17 Stormtrack Weather Team has issued a Weather Alert Day for the potential of isolated strong to severe storms on Wednesday afternoon. The threat will be contingent upon rain moving out early enough to allow the atmosphere to destabilize once again. If it does, the threat for short-lived tornadoes, hail, and strong winds will be possible.

Setup:

Strong low pressure to our southwest this afternoon is sending widespread rain and storms into the region this afternoon and evening. This is where we'll pick up most of our measurable rain over the next few days. In the meantime, a warm front associated with the system will lift north, bringing in more unstable air and warmer temperatures for Wednesday. If rain moves out quickly in the morning, that will give the atmosphere more time to recharge for additional isolated storms to develop ahead of a cold front by early afternoon.

Timing:

If rain clears out sufficiently, we'll see a lull in rainfall for most areas. Isolated strong storms could start to emerge ahead of the cold front around lunch time, with the threat moving east through early evening. The window for anything strong to severe will be from about noon through 7:00 p.m. While the severe threat will diminish by evening, scattered showers and a few storms will be possible through Thursday afternoon.

Impacts:

Typically, Weather Alert Days are issued for the threat of widespread severe weather, but the coverage of storms on Wednesday will be fairly hit and miss. However, the tornado threat is present enough to trigger the need for extra awareness during the day on Wednesday. Storms could produce quarter size hail and 50-60 mph winds along with heavy rain.

Prepare:

Make sure you have a way to receive alerts if you'll be away from home or your desk on Wednesday. Download the updated ABC 17 Stormtrack Weather app in the Google Play or Apple App store for free to get alerts and new information sent directly to your mobile device.

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Jessica Hafner

Jessica Hafner returned to ABC 17 News as chief meteorologist in 2019 after working here under Sharon Ray from 2014 to 2016.

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