Storm chances increasing through the day on Friday

UPDATE – 12:40 p.m. Friday:

As of shortly after lunchtime on Friday afternoon, the majority of the severe weather is pushing into Kansas. While we cannot totally rule out a strong to severe storm along and south of I-80, the severe weather odds for the remainder of the afternoon are diminishing. Those closer to the NE-KS Stateline would have the best chance to see any stronger wind gusts or hail.

Nevertheless, there is still plenty of rain out there. Showers and storms continue to be possible on Friday afternoon. This will have a cooling influence on temperatures. We’re likely dealing with 60s and 70s for the rest of the day.

UPDATE – 8:45 a.m. Friday:

A Severe T’Storm Watch has been issued until 3 p.m. Friday for portions of south-central Nebraska. This includes North Platte, Broken Bow, and areas as far east as the Tri-Cities. The main concerns are damaging straight-line winds perhaps up to 75 mph and very large hail. At this time, the tornado risk appears low.

The forecast from the original story remains the same. Showers and storms will move into southern Nebraska into the afternoon and may intensify as they do so.

ORIGINAL STORY:

While Lincoln is seeing sunshine to start, clouds will eventually return. Showers and storms are also ongoing in northern Nebraska as of Friday morning. The storms and associated cloud cover will migrate south through the day.

We expect Lincoln’s storm chances to gradually increase through the morning. While scattered showers and storms may arrive closer to Lincoln before lunchtime, the highest rain chances will be during the afternoon.

As these storms spread south into the afternoon, we could see a few cells flare up into something stronger.

The highest severe weather odds exist in the far southern reaches of Nebraska, especially going into Kansas. That is where we find a Level 3/5 risk for severe weather, where damaging winds in excess of 75 mph, large hail, and an isolated tornado are possible.

A Level 2/5 risk for severe weather is in place a little farther north, including Lincoln. So while we can’t rule out a few severe storms in the Lincoln area, the strongest activity should occur to the south. Again, wind and hail are the primary concerns.

High temperatures have the potential to at least reach the middle-80s in Lincoln. However, the arrival of any rain would limit how warm we get during the afternoon. We may end up seeing our high during the morning, with falling temperatures for the rest of the day.

The weather quiets down on Saturday. Skies will be mostly sunny, and we’ll see a high near 90°. The humidity will also decrease a little bit, so make sure to get outside and enjoy the weather on Saturday.

Meteorologist Malcolm Byron

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Twitter: @mbyronwx