Severe Weather This Afternoon

Much of SNE is under the gun for strong to severe storms with heavy rainfall and frequent lightning. Many of the storms have already pushed into SNE with heavy street flooding type rainfall.

There is a TORNADO WATCH in effect for Worcester County on westward through all of central and western MA and CT for the possiblity of some rotation in some of the strongest storms. Winds at about 10,000 feet are anywhere from 50-70 mph sustained so any strong storm could tap into this wind field and drop some branches and small trees with a chance of rotation, especially in SW CT. The severe threat is reduced in NE MA mainly because we never got into the warm, humid air. Much of the North Shore stayed north of the warm front and stayed in the mid 60's all day, while areas to the south of the front saw temperatures all the way into the lower 80's, fueling the storms.

The Tornado Watch for western New England is in effect until 6PM, when most of the heaviest storms should be moving off the coast. On another note, the air is extremely cold aloft and this raises the chances of some small hail to be mixed in with the heaviest of thunderstorms as well. Its a hectic afternoon, so be safe and if you are on the ballfield or the links and see the sky turn black and hear thunder off in the distance, get inside to either a car or other type of shelter and heed warnings from the NWS and other media outlets.

Thats all for now. Be safe in this first real day of severe weather for the spring of 2007.