Upstate SC under severe thunderstorm warning, tornado watch

Much of the Upstate is under a severe thunderstorm warning, according to the National Weather Service (NWS) at the Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport.

Upstate residents in Greenville, Spartanburg, Greer and the surrounding areas should anticipate thunderstorms, strong winds and the chance of tornadoes Thursday evening. The current thunderstorm warning ended at 6 p.m. The tornado watch lasts until 10 p.m.

"We're expecting a line of strong to severe thunderstorms throughout the area, most likely time is going to be 4 and 7 p.m.," Justin Lane, an NWS meteorologist said earlier Thursday. "The main threats with those are going to be brief damaging straight-line wind gusts and there's also potential for brief, short-crack tornadoes."

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The forecast called for a temperature high for Thursday near 65. South southwest winds will be around 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 31 mph. The chance of precipitation is 80%. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.

Meteorologists said thunderstorms were expected Thursday afternoon and evening ahead of a strong cold front crossing the area.

The highest-risk area for severe thunderstorms is in the western-most part of the Upstate and in Northeast Georgia. The NWS advised residents on Twitter to stay safe and be on the lookout for any warnings.

Check back for updates to this developing story.

This article originally appeared on Herald-Journal: SC weather: Strong storms, possible tornadoes expected Thursday