Severe weather possible Wednesday afternoon
MACON, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – The arrival of a new storm system and cold front will bring a chance for more severe weather around Middle Georgia today.
Today
Stormy conditions moved into Middle Georgia during the sunrise hours. Only one of them got a severe thunderstorm warning at around 8:45 am. The rest of the rain activity was light to moderate with some thunder and lightning. Most of the region saw light rain move through this morning, but the northern half of the region was impacted by heavy rain. This will likely set up a boundary going into the afternoon hours that will affect where severe storms are more likely.
The counties and cities that saw heavy rain early will have a reduced chance for severe weather this afternoon. This includes Bibb, Jones, and Baldwin Counties. The southern counties, however, did not have as much moisture come through. These include Laurens, Dodge, Wheeler, and Telfair Counties among some others. There is a higher possibility now for the atmosphere to regroup over those counties later today, and if the sun should come out, the surface heating could cause enough instability to generate some strong storms. Unfortunately there is still some wind shear, or change of wind speed with height, present in the region. Wind shear is a key ingredient in tornadic storms. Highs for this afternoon are expected to reach the mid 70s, but if the sun comes out those will push into the upper 70s.
Storm activity will persist through the afternoon hours, especially further off to the southeast. Once the sun begins to set we should start to see it calm down, however scattered showers are likely overnight. Cloud cover will not clear through the overnight hours for most of the region, keeping conditions warm. Most of the region will see low temperatures in the lower 50s.
Tomorrow
Thursday is another split forecast day where half the region will see clouds and rain while the other sees shine. That line mentioned above dividing the counties from those who saw heavy rain early on Wednesday from those who didn’t is going to play a key factor. Those who saw the heavy rain and the reduced severe threat on Wednesday will see overall pleasant conditions on Thursday as the sun returns. Highs in those counties will be in the upper 60s. The counties who did not see the heavy rain will likely continue to see cloudy conditions with a chance for off and on rain during the afternoon. Highs in these counties will be in the low to mid 60s. At this time there is no threat for severe weather tomorrow afternoon.
Overnight tomorrow the cloud cover should finally clear out of the region as low temperatures cool off a bit more, dropping into the mid to upper 40s. The winds will make a return towards the northwest, picking up in speed as Friday draws on.
Friday and the Weekend
We aren’t expecting any storms to come through on Friday this time around, which is beneficial to anyone who has to travel up I-75 ahead of the weekend. Overall conditions will be quite sunny from Friday through Monday. Highs over the weekend will be in the 60s, dropping from the upper 60s to the lower 60s as each day passes. Winds will be rather noticeable, especially Friday and Saturday. Sustained speeds will range from 15-20 mph with gusts upwards of 30 mph both days. Friday’s wind will be from the west while Saturday’s will be more from the northwest. Breezes will continue on Sunday however the speeds should cut back a bit. Temperatures will jump back into the 70s around the region by Monday afternoon.
Follow Meteorologist Aaron Lowery on Facebook (Aaron Lowery 41NBC) and Twitter (@ALowWX) for weather updates throughout the day. Also, you can watch his forecasts Monday through Friday on 41NBC News at Daybreak (6-7 a.m.) and 41Today (11 a.m).
