A slow moving storm system is expected to develop across the Central to Southern High Plains Monday night, setting the stage for a multi-day heavy rainfall event affecting much of the Central to Southern Plains and Lower Mississippi Valley regions.
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Large portions of the Central to Southern Plains, primarily the western portions, are in an extreme to exceptional drought, with some overlap expected to these drought areas and the areas of expected heavy precipitation.
The eastern portions of the Central to Southern Plains have fared better recently with precipitation and are not in as severe drought conditions.
Either way, however, the slow movement of this storm system will bring the risk of Flash Flooding across portions of the Central and Southern Plains from Monday night into early Wednesday and the threat of flash flooding across the Lower Mississippi Valley during Wednesday.
In addition to the heavy rains and flash flood threat across these regions, severe weather is also possible with large hail and high winds the greatest threats, but also a threat of tornadoes.
The wet weather pattern across the mid section of the nation will support colder than average temperatures for the next few days.
The core of the much below average temperatures on Tuesday will be centered over the Central to Southern High Plains from western Kansas into southeastern Colorado, northeast New Mexico and into the Texas/Oklahoma Panhandle region, with high temperatures 20 to 30 degrees below average.
Below average temperatures are expected to stretch across a larger region of the mid section of the nation on Wednesday, but temperatures are not expected to be as cold as Tuesday, generally in the 10 to 20 degree below average range.
Below average temperatures also expected to persist across the Mid-Atlantic over the next few days.
Many locations will be 20 to 25 degrees F cooler than this past weekend when temperatures were in the low to middle 90s.
While temperatures will be colder than average across the mid section of the nation and Mid-Atlantic, heat will be building across interior California into the Great Basin this week.
Temperatures by Wednesday are expected to reach the lower 100s through the Sacramento and San Joaquin Valleys, which will be near the record highs for this date.
The hot/dry weather will also increase the fire weather danger across the northern Sacramento Valley.
No let up to the persistent fire weather threat over portions of the Southern High Plains into the Southwest.
These areas will be to the west of where heavy rains are expected through portions of the Southern Plains, with these areas continuing to experience Severe to Exceptional drought conditions and the resulting persistent fire weather threat. ■
A clipper system will move quickly across the northern Plains into the Midwest Friday and the Northeast by Saturday, bringing a wintry mix of rain and snow showers ahead of a sweeping cold front.