Tracking light rain and scattered storms Friday, mild start to the weekend

TONIGHT: Mostly clear to partly cloudy with lows in the upper 40s.

TOMORROW: Light rain followed by afternoon storms. Some storms could be strong with isolated cases of quarter size hail and strong wind gusts. Highs in the lower 70s.

EXTENDED: Warmer, more moist air moves in as winds kick up from the southwest tomorrow, pushing temperatures to near the 70 degree mark. We'll have a marginal amount of instability and wind shear ahead of a cold front for storms to develop by afternoon, especially along and south of the I-70 corridor. Storms are likely along that zone by mid-late afternoon, and will sink south through the night, exiting south of the I-44 corridor between 9-10 p.m. From there, we're more clear and warmer to start the weekend as highs reach near 80 on Saturday. Another disturbance moves in from the north on Saturday night, bringing the potential of showers and a few thunderstorms from Saturday night through early Sunday morning. We'll begin clearing out by early Sunday afternoon, but will be cooler on the back side of rain as highs stay just under 70 degrees. Next week starts off pleasant with highs near 70 on Monday before another rain chance creeps in on Tuesday as low pressure across the Great Lakes drags a cold front across the region.