More than 200 million people from the Southwest to the Northeast will be experiencing above-average temperatures this week. However, that warmth will kick-start the spring snowmelt in the Upper Midwest and the Rockies, leading to a flood threat that could last for weeks.
The spring snowmelt happens every year when temperatures gradually warm above freezing consistently enough to melt snow that has stuck around in regions all winter.
That resulting water that has been stored will be released, which can lead to the ponding of water on roadways, as well as rises in rivers and streams.
According to the FOX Forecast Center, areas that will be impacted are used to flooding during the spring, but after a record year of snowfall, the risk of flooding will be higher than in previous years.
There are two main areas of concern – the Upper Midwest and the Rockies.
But as spring progresses, other regions will be included in flood threats.
The unseasonable pattern change has thrown the Upper Midwest and the Rockies from winter into spring, with temperatures nearly 30 degrees above average in some areas.
Temperatures will reach the 70s and 80s across much of the Upper Midwest and central and northern Plains.
Minneapolis should get to about 80 degrees on Tuesday. To the southwest, North Platte, Nebraska, could see a high temperature of about 87 degrees on Tuesday.
Across the western U.S., temperatures will also be well above average for this time of year.
Denver should see a high temperature of about 83 degrees, and Salt Lake City should see a high temperature of about 78 degrees – 21 degrees above average.
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Flood alerts have already been issued in the Upper Midwest, including parts of Minnesota and northern Wisconsin, as the rapid snowmelt begins with temperatures soaring into the 70s and 80s this week.
Some locations most likely to be impacted include Duluth and International Falls in Minnesota.
The FOX Forecast Center expects the flood threat to last well into this week and, in some cases, not peak until later in the week.
Flood alerts are also in effect across the Rockies.
Areas of main concern include northern Nevada, Montana, Idaho and Wyoming.
The FOX Forecast Center expects rises in rivers and streams that could lead to the flooding of low-lying areas.
That flooding threat will persist most of the week and could also last into next week.