Entire State at Risk – Today’s Severe Weather Threat in Louisiana

(KMDL-FM) The Storm Prediction Center, the department of the National Weather Service whose mission is to predict and track severe weather across the nation, has almost the entire state of Louisiana under its microscope this morning. The reason? A strong cold front will push across the state today and Saturday and bring with it a threat for tornadoes, small hail, damaging winds, and flooding rains.

The National Weather Service Forecast Office in Lake Charles has identified several different threat areas to be cognizant of ahead of this storm system. Most of those threats are enhanced by the current weather conditions across Louisiana this morning.

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If you're just making your first step outside as you're reading this report, you'll note it's very warm and very muggy even by Louisiana standards for the ninth day in January. That is about to change in a very big way when that approaching frontal system gets closer to the state.

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What Is Louisiana's Severe Weather Threat This Weekend?

The simple way to answer that is by looking at the graphic provided by the National Weather Service. As you can see, forecasters have three main concerns for Louisiana's weekend forecast. Those concerns are high winds, hail, and potential tornadoes.

Forecasters say the arrival of the front and the effects associated with it will move into northwestern Louisiana later this morning and into the afternoon. We are already seeing some "streaming bands" of showers and thunderstorms showing up on National Weather Service Radars but those would be "the calm" before the real storm arrives.

Strong Storms Could Affect After-School Pick-Up Across Louisiana

Rainfall chances will begin to ramp up across South Louisiana after lunch, and perhaps by the time you're picking up kids from school or meeting a bus in your neighborhood, there could be strong storms in the area.

Strong storms will continue to move into and through the area as the evening progresses. In fact, there could be showers and storms, some with potentially flooding rains anytime between Noon on Friday and Noon on Saturday, although most of the forecast models suggest the storms will move out of South Louisiana by mid-morning on Saturday.

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Once the frontal system moves through, we'll continue to experience major changes in our weather. Most of us will be abruptly reminded on Sunday morning that it is still winter as temperatures fall to more seasonable norms. The past few days have seen near-record heat across Louisiana. Temperatures will be significantly cooler by the time Sunday and especially Monday morning roll around.

Low temperatures on Monday morning, as we start the next work week, will be very near the freezing mark. The afternoon temperatures next week will be in the middle 50s to lower 60s, depending on where you are in the state.