6 First Alert Weather: Thunderstorms winding down overnight

OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) - Strong to severe thunderstorm continue south of the Omaha metro with large hail the main risk in far southeast Nebraska and southern Iowa. A few lingering showers or storms may try to push into the Omaha metro through 1am with brief heavy rain and plenty of lightning, but severe weather is not expected.

10:55 p.m. Update -- High winds remain a threat along the Kansas/Nebraska border, but the rest of the area is seeing severe risks decreasing. A final line of storms west of Lincoln will continue to quickly push east. Downpours with some lightning and thunder remain possible for the metro through roughly 1am. After 1am, any lingering showers or storms will be pushing to the east with quieter weather for the rest of the night.

9:15 p.m. Update -- Storms continue to the south of the Omaha metro with large hail the main risk at this time. Some lingering showers and rumbles of thunders trying to push into the metro, but these are not severe. Additional storms south of I-80 through Midnight.

9:00 p.m. Update -- Line of severe storms continues from south of Red Oak through Shenandoah into the Auburn and Pawnee City areas. Large hail up to 2″ in size continues to be the main risk with these storms. North, a couple of straggling storms near the metro could produce small hail.

8:35 p.m. Update -- ALL Tornado Warnings have been CANCELLED. A line of severe storms continue from around Red Oak through Nebraska City to around Beatrice. These storms continue to be capable of producing large hail up to tennis ball size at times (2.5″).

8:25 p.m. Update -- Tornado Warnings continue for the Emerson-Red Oak area and near Hamburg, IA. Rotation has diminished in the last few minutes, so a tornado is not immediately likely. However, storms are still very strong so stay alert until the warnings are cancelled.

8:10 p.m. Update -- The severe threat will continue across southeast Nebraska and southern Iowa for the next few hours. Large hail is the main risk now, with highs winds becoming a bigger risk as time goes on. North, some storms are possible for Lincoln and Omaha but will not be as strong.

7:55 p.m. Update -- A line of storms from near Henderson through Malvern to near Nebraska City to around Cook just north of Tecumseh will be capable of producing large hail up to tennis ball sized (2.5″). The hail most likely in the pink/purple core of the storms on radar.

7:40 p.m. Update -- Central Mills County will see a risk for large hail of 1 to as large as 2.5″ in size over the next 20 minutes. Stay indoors and away from windows until the storm has passed! Malvern to Hastings to Emerson in particular should be seeking shelter indoors!

7:25 p.m. Update -- A Severe Thunderstorm Warning is in effect for portions of Sarpy, Cass, and Mills counties until 8:15pm. A storm near Plattsmouth is capable of producing hail up to half-dollar sized. This storm is moving toward Glenwood, Silver City, and Malvern.

7:10 p.m. Update -- A Severe Thunderstorm Warning has been issued for the Syracuse and Nebraska City areas until 8pm. Large hail up to half-dollar size and damaging wind gusts are possible. Storms are develop just south of the immediate Omaha metro.

6:50 p.m. Update -- A Severe Thunderstorm Watch has been issued for much of eastern Nebraska and southwest Iowa until 1am, including the Lincoln and Omaha areas. Thunderstorms developing now in southern Nebraska will bring a risk for large hail and damaging winds this evening.

The expected wind shift, or cold front, has continue to drop south of the metro this evening, now just south of Lincoln and Plattsmouth. The strongest storms are expected to develop near and south of this front with the risk for very large hail and damaging winds. Additional storms may develop north of the front and affect the metro, but they may not be quite as strong, which is good news.

Original Post:

Cloudy skies this morning gave way to some sunshine this afternoon along with some much warmer conditions. Temperatures pushed into the mid-80s, with highs in the mid to upper 80s south of I-80. Some parts of southeast Nebraska and southern Iowa have seen highs around 90 degrees. The warm and humid air will help to fuel a risk for strong to severe storms across much of eastern Nebraska and southwest Iowa.

This evening a wind shift is cutting across the area, sitting just south of the I-80 corridor with slightly cooler air beginning to move in north of the interstate. This front is expected to be the focus for thunderstorm development by 6 to 8pm, with storms potentially developing right over or just south of I-80. Storms will then push east into Iowa, carrying with them a risk for severe weather. It does appear that the strongest storms will target areas south of I-80.

Where storms develop, damaging hail will be the greatest risk with the potential for hail up to 3 inches in size. Not every storm will produce hail that large, but that is the potential we are looking at. Severe wind gusts of 65-75mph will also be possible. An isolated tornado cannot be ruled out, particularly south of I-80, but that will not be the main risk we are looking at this evening.

A couple round of storms are possible through Midnight, leading to the potential for some pockets of heavier rainfall. Storms should be moving out of the area by around Midnight, with quiet conditions returning for the late overnight hours into Monday morning. Sunny skies return Monday afternoon with highs in the upper 70s. The unsettled weather pattern returns Tuesday through Friday with daily evening or overnight shower and storm chances. At the moment, no particular day stands out in terms of severe weather or a widespread rain evening.

With today’s storm potential coming in the evening hours, stay tuned throughout the day for updates on the severe weather risk.

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