Severe Weather Threat Moves Into Louisiana Friday

A storm system approaching Louisiana from the west will likely kick off strong showers and storms across the state on Friday, some of those storms could reach severe limits. The Storm Prediction Center is placing a large portion of western Louisiana in the slight risk category for severe storms on Friday. Meanwhile, much of the eastern half of the state will be at a marginal risk of severe storms.

Today's weather across the region will be calm, especially compared to what we are expecting during the day on Friday. The catalyst for the bumpy weather is an upper-level low-pressure system currently centered over the Texas panhandle.

That system will move eastward during the day today. Winds will become breezy and quite gusty later today and especially on Friday ahead of the storm system. As of now, it looks as if the worst of the weather will push into and through South Louisiana in the early morning hours of Saturday.

But we can't rule out a shower or thunderstorm late Friday afternoon or Friday evening. The National Weather Service Office in Lake Charles is forecasting a 30% chance of showers and storms Friday afternoon but that threat of rain jumps up to 80% by late Friday night into the early hours of Saturday.

As of now, it looks as if the worst of the weather will clear the Acadiana area by mid-afternoon on Saturday. Rain chances decrease Saturday night and winds will become gusty from the north but we don't anticipate a big cool down behind this storm system.

Rainfall amounts across the area could be just what most of our lawns and gardens have been needing. Model forecasts suggest rainfall amounts of one to three inches will be common along the I-10 corridor from Friday afternoon through Saturday night.

Oh, and one more thing, don't forget this is the weekend that we do the clock thing. You'll set your clock back one hour at bedtime on Saturday night as we move back into Standard Time for the winter months. It's probably a good idea to check the battery in your smoke detector too, trust us, you'll be glad you did.