Tracking widespread rain and storms tonight, flooding possible into Friday morning

TONIGHT: Scattered to widespread storms with heavy rain and lightning. Isolated strong winds possible. Lows in the upper 60s.

TOMORROW: Scattered storms, especially early. Highs in the upper 70s to around 80.

EXTENDED: Scattered storms have started to fill in along a cold front and are slow moving along the stalled front with little to move the boundary tonight, increasing the threat for flash flooding. Storms are expected to become more widespread overnight and bring the potential of 2-3" of rain, with isolated pockets of 4-5" possible in a narrow band between I-70 and I-44 through Friday morning. A few storms tonight will bring the potential of small hail and isolated damaging winds as a level 1/5 severe risk is in place. Storms hang around through midday Friday, with scattered activity possible into the afternoon. There's a Flash Flood Watch in effect for much of Mid-Missouri through Friday night. By Saturday, if the front lifts far enough to our north, that will shift storm chances to our north and east, but if it's slow to progress, we could see scattered storms yet again, especially in the afternoon. By Sunday, high pressure begins to take hold to our south, effectively bringing an end to rain chances with sinking air and rising temperatures through the region. With the high pressure center to our south, we can expect southerly winds to continue drawing in Gulf moisture to the area, keeping dew points in the 70s. High dew points coupled with highs in the low to mid-90s will yield a heat index above 100 degrees, potentially approaching 105 degrees by early next week. Once the storms clear, we'll begin messaging a multi-day stretch of Weather Alert Days for extreme heat next week.