Heavy rain, thunderstorms in North Texas forecast Tuesday afternoon into evening
It seems the rainy and damp conditions that began Monday in North Texas will be sticking around for at least one more day, according to the National Weather Service in Fort Worth.
It was expected to be overcast all day Tuesday, with a chance for showers throughout most of the day, as well as thunderstorms in the afternoon, meteorologist Juan Hernandez said over the phone. There was a light drizzle in parts of Dallas-Fort Worth on Tuesday morning, Hernandez explained, and storms were developing in the Texas Panhandle. That included areas between Lubbock and Wichita Falls.
Those storms should gain strength as they move east and arrive in DFW sometime around 1 p.m., Hernandez said. The main threat facing the region, though, will be periods of heavy rain that could lead to flooding, he said.
A flood advisory is in effect until 4 p.m. Tuesday in Tarrant, Dallas, Ellis and Johnson counties. Excessive runoff from heavy rainfall is expected to cause minor flooding of small creeks and streams and areas that are low lying or have poor drainage including some highways, streets, and underpasses.
The storm chances will be highest from around 1 p.m. to 6 p.m., Hernandez said.
“The areas that typically have puddles are probably going to have puddles,” he said. “So for motorists out on the road during the evening commute or the afternoon commute, just taking it slow might be the best advice.”
DFW is forecast to see between a half-inch to an inch of rain by Wednesday morning.
It’s possible there could be hail during that time frame but it’s unlikely, Hernandez said. If there is hail, he said, it would likely be small.
A hazardous weather outlook warns that though the severe weather threat is low, there could be downpours across eastern North Texas and Central Texas that lead to isolated flash flooding.
May is typically the wettest month in Texas. Hernandez said when storm patterns show up like the one on Monday, it can lead to multiple days of storms. That’s because the lingering jet stream, he said, continues to create activity in the atmosphere.
There were reports of large hail Monday evening in areas to the north and south of DFW, including half-dollar size hail in Everman and hail 2 inches in diameter in Bonham, Hernandez said. The largest hail was 4 inches, reported in Ponder around 6:25 p.m.
The high temperature on Tuesday is expected to be around 64, according to the weather service forecast. Temperatures could drop to 55 overnight.
The rain and storms should leave the region later Tuesday, the forecast indicates. It’s expected to be cloudy on Wednesday with a high around 64, according to the forecast, and then mostly sunny on Thursday with a high near 72.
The high on Friday is expected to be around 80, and it should again be mostly sunny.
Isolated thunderstorms should return to the forecast between Saturday and Monday, according to the hazardous weather outlook. Details on those potential storms weren’t yet available on Tuesday.
3-Day Storm Outlook
This map shows the 3-day weather outlook for storms by the National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center. Sources: National Weather Service, Esri.
Storm Reports
This map contains continuously updated tornado, wind storm and hail storm reports for the past 24 hours. The map also includes tornado reports for the past week and recent rainfall accumulations. Sources: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Esri.
