Cold front brings heavy rain, tornado threat in Florida; snow, gusty winds forecast in Midwest, Northeast

Snow squalls and gusty winds are expected to roll into parts of the Midwest and Northeast on Friday, while some of the Southern states could expect flooding.

Wind gusts in the region could reach between 20 and 30 miles per hour, with about an inch or two of snow in places from northeastern Ohio through northwestern Pennsylvania and into New York, said Mike Doll, senior meteorologist at AccuWeather.

"With some of these squalls obviously the danger is reduced visibility," he said. "They can quickly cover the roads with snow."

Here's what you need to know about Friday's weather:

Severe weather, heavy rains in Florida forecast

A slow-moving cold front moving across North Florida is forecast to bring strong storms across the area today.

By 10 a.m. ET Friday, more than 3 inches of rain had fallen, and another 2 to 3 inches is possible before storms move to the east, according to the National Weather Service Tallahassee.

The isolated clusters of thunderstorms are forecast to develop and move through the Panhandle. A few could become strong enough to spin up a weak tornado or produce damaging winds, according to the Florida Public Radio Emergency Network.

The National Weather Service Tallahassee warned residents of the following impacts from Friday's storms:

• 3-4 inches of rain, with some areas seeing more than 6 inches

• Wind gusts up to 60 mph are possible today and Saturday

• A tornado or two are possible today and Saturday

• Flash floods, along with urban and small stream flooding possible

Cold front forecast for Northeast Friday

A cold front is going to be moving through the Northeast, where it's been unusually warm. Pittsburgh, for instance, was in the low 70s Thursday but will cool down to the 40s on Friday, Doll said.

"If anything, it's a return to what we normally expect for this time of year," he said.

The National Weather Service said that "arctic air will remain absent and a return to much above average temperatures likely by early next week."

Still, a winter weather advisory was in effect for parts of Maine, with snow accumulations expected to reach between 3 and 6 inches, sleet accumulations around a quarter inch and some ice accumulation.

The advisory expires at 9 a.m. ET Friday.

More flooding possible in South

Doll said there could be heavy rain with potential for flooding from the Florida Panhandle through Southern Georgia and parts of the Carolinas on Friday.

"Some areas could pick up 2 to 3 inches of rain," he said. "That could lead to some street-level flooding across that region."

Much of that region has seen average to below-average precipitation over the past few weeks, which may help mitigate the risk of flooding, the National Weather Service said.

Meanwhile Oklahoma and Arkansas could experience a mix of rain and snow, though not with much accumulation, he said.

National weather radar

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Snow, high winds in Friday weather forecast for Ohio, New York