Severe weather threat continues along Gulf Coast as flooding concerns grow across Southeast

Isolated to scattered severe thunderstorms are possible along parts of the northern Gulf Coast and in the northern Plains on Tuesday.

NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center highlighted both regions in its level 2 out of 5 risk of severe thunderstorms for Tuesday.

This comes after more severe thunderstorms pounded the South on Monday following an EF-3 tornado that turned deadly near Louin, Mississippi, Sunday night.

The northern Gulf Coast has the greatest threat of severe weather on Tuesday, while parts of Florida could also see a few gusty thunderstorms.

Damaging wind gusts are the primary concern, the FOX Forecast Center said. However, large hail and an isolated tornado can’t be ruled out.

In the northern Plains, afternoon thunderstorm development is initially expected over parts of Wyoming, with isolated storms then moving quickly to the northeast, the FOX Forecast Center said. By early evening, additional storm development is expected farther east across the northern Plains, particularly North Dakota and South Dakota.

The severe weather risk in this region may persist into Wednesday morning.

More than 150,000 customers remained without power Tuesday morning in Oklahoma after severe weather swept through the region over the weekend. In Louisiana, more than 63,000 were still without power.

Over 92,000 homes and businesses were out of power across Texas, Mississippi and Arkansas.

The Southeast and parts of the Carolinas are bracing for multiple days of heavy rain this week, causing the flooding threat to grow even though the rain will be spread out over a span of about five days.

A cutoff area of low pressure will remain nearly stationary across the region for most of the week. This will provide the necessary trigger for showers and thunderstorms, which will combine with a stream of deep moisture from the Atlantic to produce heavy rainfall.

Flood Watches have been issued from southwestern Virginia into the western Carolinas and northeastern Georgia through Thursday afternoon.

“Big heads up here for flooding, and a lot of this is going to be later tonight,” FOX Weather meteorologist Britta Merwin said. “We have Flash Flood Warnings in effect right now for parts of South Carolina. But we’re expecting heavier rain to build in later tonight when a lot of us will be sleeping across the higher terrain in the Appalachians in North Carolina.”

Overall, between 3 and 5 inches of rain is expected for most of the region, but some locations could receive nearly 8 inches of rainfall by the end of the week. 

PEAK FLASH FLOOD SEASON IN U.S. BEGINS IN JUNE

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