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A low pressure system is forecast to develop to the lee of the Rockies over the central Plains on Sunday. This system will interact with a warm, muggy air mass from the Gulf of Mexico, bringing strong to severe thunderstorms to the central third of the country. Severe thunderstorms will be possible over a handful of states, including Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Arkansas, Kansas and Missouri, bringing a chance of flash floods to the middle and upper Mississippi Valley. A cold front will also move across the region, as a mixture of rain and snow is expected over the northern Plains and the upper Midwest. Scattered showers and thunderstorms are also expected to move across the Tennessee Valley and the Southeast during the late afternoon and evening. An area of low pressure along the northern tier of the frontal boundary will shift across the Great Lakes. This system will bring a chance of rain and thunderstorms to parts of the Northeast, while freezing rain will be possible over northern New England.
A separate wave of low pressure will inch across the Great Basin and the Intermountain West on Sunday, as a mixture of rain and snow is expected over the Rockies. The heaviest snow will occur over the high elevations of the central Rockies.
High pressure over the eastern Pacific will keep conditions mostly clear across the West Coast. Temperatures will range between the 80s and 90s across the Desert Southwest.
SATURDAY'S WEATHER EXTREMES:
HIGHEST TEMPERATURE (DEGREES F).........................102 Death Valley, Calif.
HIGHEST HEAT INDEX (DEGREES F)..........................91 Laredo, Texas
LOWEST TEMPERATURE (DEGREES F)..........................18 Crane Lake, Minn.
LOWEST WIND CHILL (DEGREES F)...........................-39 Nuiqsut, Alaska
HIGHEST WIND GUST (MPH).................................69 Guadalupe Pass, Texas
HIGHEST PRECIPITATION (INCHES)..........................1.77 La Crosse, Wis.
ON THIS DATE
Thunderstorms without tornadoes can cause more damage than you would think. For instance, on this date in 1987, a strong thunderstorm in Texas created wind gusts of almost 100 mph. Wind of this magnitude was enough to destroy two airplanes, and caused one million dollars in property damage.
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