Tornadoes, severe storms could hit Charlotte area today. Here’s what to expect.

Another round of strong storms expected across the Charlotte region on Friday could spawn tornadoes, a National Weather Service meteorologist said Friday morning.

Here’s what to know.

Counties under threat of tornadoes

All of Mecklenburg County falls under the threat of tornadoes, along with Cabarrus, Iredell, Gaston, Lincoln, Cleveland and Rowan counties, and Upstate South Carolina, meteorologist Ashley Rehnberg told The Charlotte Observer.

After a major storm spawned a deadly tornado, record-setting rains and heavy winds on Tuesday, more bad weather is forecast for late Friday afternoon across the Charlotte area.

The tornado threat remains until early evening, Rehnberg said.

What about wind and rain?

Winds at least strong enough to “make driving difficult” are expected across the region between 1 p.m. Friday and 7 a.m. Saturday, NWS meteorologists said in a wind advisory bulletin at 4:15 a.m. Friday.

“Use extra caution,” forecasters urged drivers.

The expected system may dump less moisture and be less widespread than Tuesday’s destructive storm across the state, NWS meteorologists said on Twitter.

Still, people across the Charlotte region should stay alert to more flooding and wind damage, NWS forecasters advised.

“Gusty winds will blow around unsecured objects,” according to Friday’s wind advisory. “Tree limbs could be blown down and a few power outages may result.”

Charlotte-area weather forecast for Friday

Winds in Charlotte could gust as high as 39 mph Friday and 28 early Saturday, according to the NWS Charlotte forecast at 9 a.m. Friday.

“Another in a series of low pressure systems will affect the western Carolinas and northeast Georgia on Friday and Friday evening,” according to a hazardous weather outlook bulletin issued by the NWS office in Greer, South Carolina.

The alert included Mecklenburg and surrounding counties, the Carolinas mountains and the N.C. Piedmont and foothills.

“This system will bring strong wind shear but weak instability ahead of a cold front during the day, which would raise the potential for a few severe thunderstorms, with damaging wind gusts being the main threat,” according to the alert.

‘When Jesus comes calling.’ NC community mourns man killed in Catawba County tornado

Where is the greatest risk of storms?

Areas along and south of Interstate 85 face the greatest risk of storms, NWS forecasters said. It all depends on how much instability develops, they said.

“Isolated heavy rainfall is also possible,” according to the NWS bulletin.

Charlotte has a 90% chance of showers throughout Friday, according to the NWS forecast. Any thunderstorms would likely emerge after 3 p.m., the forecast showed.

In Tuesday’s fierce storms, a tornado packing 110-mph winds killed a person in Catawba County, a National Weather Service team confirmed Wednesday.

Charlotte forecast

Saturday should turn sunny, with a predicted high near 50, according to the Charlotte forecast.

Sunday should be mostly sunny with a high near 51, while mostly cloudy skies are forecast to return on the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday.

Tuesday has a 40% chance of showers, while Wednesday should be mostly sunny, the forecast showed.

Highs are forecast to drop from 59 on Friday to 50 on Saturday, 51 on Sunday, 47 on Monday, 43 on Tuesday, 36 on Wednesday and 46 on Thursday.

Predicted lows will be extremely frigid by mid-week, bottoming out at 18 degrees early Wednesday and 23 early Thursday, according to the Charlotte forecast at 10 a.m. Friday.

A high of only 36 is forecast on Wednesday.

After-school activities canceled

As of 3 p.m., Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, Iredell Statesville, Rowan Salisbury, Cabarrus County, Anson County Schools canceled all after-school activities Friday afternoon due to the threat of bad weather.

Iredell-Statesville Schools said an Iredell County wind advisory for expected 20-30 mph winds and 45 mph gusts caused it to cancel activities, but Prime Time was expected to continue as scheduled.

“Wind speeds above 40 mph can result in hazardous conditions for high-profile vehicles like school buses,” the school district said.

Lincoln County Schools plans to continue Friday’s athletic events, it posted on Facebook.

CMPD watches for weather issues

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police said they were monitoring the weather again on Friday.

The CMPD Central Division’s Bike Unit manually cleared a dozen clogged rainwater drains on Tuesday, CMPD said Friday on X.