Florida to Virginia face severe weather, tornado risks

A severe weather outbreak on Wednesday unleashed a preliminary count of two dozen tornadoes and hammered portions of Mississippi and Alabama. AccuWeather forecasters were monitoring a significant severe weather threat on Thursday as storms shifted eastward across the southeastern United States. More than 40 million people may be at risk for severe weather into Thursday evening.

The main threat to lives and property will be along the Atlantic Seaboard, stretching from Florida to Virginia on Thursday and into Thursday evening.

AccuWeather meteorologists said that extensive cloud cover and a moist ground may have taken an edge off the intensity and limited the number of tornadoes that developed on Wednesday. Similar conditions along with a wedge of cool air may occur in some areas farther to the east into Thursday evening. However, the threat exists for multiple, strong tornadoes to touch down as well as all other forms of severe weather, including powerful wind gusts, large hail, flash flooding and frequent lightning strikes.

"As we see it now, the greatest threat for tornadoes into Thursday evening is likely in the eastern part of the Carolinas to eastern Georgia," AccuWeather Chief On-Air Meteorologist Bernie Rayno said.

Cool air may remain in place across western Virginia. That factor may force thunderstorms to be elevated in nature, which means the base of the storm would develop several thousand feet above the ground.

"This cool wedge may reduce the tornado risk but may not totally eliminate the threat of isolated tornadoes, strong wind gusts, hail and torrential downpours," Rayno said.

The cool wedge managed to erode by the afternoon hours in upstate South Carolina and western North Carolina and has again raised the risk of tornadoes somewhat.

Wind gusts up to 85 mph will still be possible in some of the storm. Roof damage, blown-out windows and crashing trees can be caused by fierce winds in lieu of tornadoes, and for that reason, people should take severe thunderstorm warnings as seriously as tornado warnings.

Major cities at risk for severe weather during part of Thursday include Savannah, Georgia; Charlotte, Raleigh and Wilmington, North Carolina; Columbia and Charleston, South Carolina; Norfolk, Virginia; Charleston, West Virginia; and Gainesville and Jacksonville, Florida.

The overall risk of tornadoes is expected to stretch from north-central and northeastern Florida to southeastern Georgia, the low country of South Carolina, eastern North Carolina and southeastern Virginia into Thursday night.

Many of the severe thunderstorms and tornadoes erupted well ahead of an advancing cold front and squall line on Wednesday, which allowed multiple rounds of storms to strike some hard-hit areas.

"From Thursday to Thursday night in the Southeast states, the majority of the severe weather is likely to focus along the advancing cold front," Rayno said. The main threat of severe weather may only last a couple of hours, on average, in most locations.

Thick haze and rain may cause poor visibility and obscure storms -- and potentially tornadoes that touch down -- across the Southeast states into Thursday evening. AccuWeather meteorologists say this is yet another reason to stay tuned to watches and warnings.

Along the northern edge of the most intense severe weather threat area, heavy, gusty and isolated severe thunderstorms can also occur in parts of southeastern Maryland and central Virginia Thursday afternoon into Thursday evening.

A secondary area of locally severe thunderstorms is also anticipated farther to the northwest in portions of eastern Kentucky, southern Ohio, central and southern West Virginia and eastern Tennessee Thursday afternoon and evening. In both of these northern zones, the main threats will be from strong wind gusts, hail and flash flooding, but an isolated tornado cannot be ruled out.

Downpours could also trigger localized flash flooding. Overall, the threat of flash flooding is lower in the Southeast when compared to areas west of the Appalachians since the ground is drier farther to the east.

Even though the risk of nocturnal tornadoes is substantially lower on Thursday as most storms may have been swept off the coast by nightfall, there may still be severe storms and the potential for tornadoes after dark in parts of eastern North Carolina and perhaps across part of the Florida Peninsula.

AccuWeather meteorologists stress that having a means to receive severe thunderstorm and tornado warnings can make the difference between life and death. People have told AccuWeather that push notifications from the AccuWeather app "literally saved our lives" during a severe weather outbreak.

"It's very important to have a way to get severe weather notifications at all times of the day, but especially at night," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Mike Doll said. "The AccuWeather app can help with this."

Forecasters also recommend that flashlights should be kept handy and in working order and generators fueled in case of power outages. A battery-powered weather radio can also be kept on hand, and the volume set on either a radio or cell phone should be set to a level high enough to be a warning should storms approach.

One area of North Carolina may not be able to depend on this emergency alert system on Thursday. A radio transmitter near Raleigh, North Carolina, is currently out of service, meaning that people in and around the city will need to use another method besides a NOAA Weather Radio to receive alerts, such as tornado warnings.

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Two dozen tornadoes were reported from Missouri and Louisiana to Alabama on Wednesday, according to the National Weather Service Storm Prediction Center's preliminary tally. The storms left a trail of damage. Moundville, Alabama, located south of Tuscaloosa, was among the areas pummeled by severe weather, and several homes and buildings suffered major damage in the area. AccuWeather National Reporter Bill Wadell was in Fairview, Alabama, on Wednesday evening to survey the damage first-hand.

Chilton County Sheriff John Sharon told Wadell that everyone was safe and accounted for after the tornado touch down. "Seeing the amount of damage that you have, I mean homes just totally destroyed, it's a miracle that everybody is OK here," Shearon told Wadell.

No fatalities were reported amid the outbreak of damaging storms on Wednesday, but there were reports of injuries in one community struck by a twister. The SPC reported two injuries in Clarke County, Alabama, after a suspected tornado damaged four homes, leaving one completely destroyed, along around 4:30 p.m.

Dozens of reports came in for large hail on Wednesday as well with some stones as large as baseballs. Damaging winds were the most extensive impact of the damaging storms, with SPC reporting 85 incidents of wind damage and gusts up to 70 to 82 mph.

Thunderstorms that erupted Tuesday night produced at least 70 incidents of severe weather and included only one report of a tornado but more than 40 incidents of large hail and nearly 30 incidents of high winds.

AccuWeather's team of expert meteorologists will be constantly monitoring the forecast and severe weather setup throughout the remainder of this week -- and forecasters were already busy Thursday analyzing a developing threat of severe weather next week.

The front that sweeps severe weather into the Atlantic later Thursday night may stall over the Bahamas, and a storm may form along the front and move northward this weekend. "Such a storm can bring gusty winds, rough seas and rain along the southern Atlantic coast for a time," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Brett Anderon said.

Meanwhile, farther to the west, a new storm system has the potential to initiate a new round of severe weather beginning Sunday night in western Texas and subsequent rounds of severe weather farther to the east over the central and southern United States into the middle of next week.

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