Heavy rain and storm threat will continue through the end of the week

A pattern similar to last week will once again set up across the Midwest keeping the threat for heavy rain and storms through the end of the week.  A weak cool front which spawned a line of thunderstorms late Sunday night/early Monday morning will settle just to the south of Rockford Monday afternoon.  This will once again become the focal point for showers, and possibly a thunderstorm or two, to redevelop along later this afternoon and evening.  That boundary will shift further south Tuesday as high pressure builds across northern Wisconsin and the U.P. of Michigan.  This will keep a breeze from the north dropping temperatures slightly Tuesday afternoon.  The main low pressure system will lift from the Plains Wednesday pushing a warm front through central Illinois and into northern Illinois by

Day 3 Outlook: Storm Prediction Center

Wednesday night.  Severe weather will be likely from northern Texas, Oklahoma, southeast Kansas, Missouri, Iowa and western Illinois late Wednesday afternoon ahead of low pressure.  For us, the warm front will be the focus for rain, possibly heavy at times, through Thursday morning.  The first low will pass north through Wisconsin with a secondary low developing in northern Illinois Thursday afternoon.  Heavy rain and even stronger storms will be possible from Illinois south through the mid-Mississippi River Valley.  When all said and done an additional 2"-3" of rain will occur; locally higher amounts if thunderstorms begin to train, or continuously move over the same location, this week.

Area river levels remain elevated coming out of the weekend with many reporting minor, close to moderate, flooding.  Additional rainfall the next 4 days will only cause rivers to rise and additional flood warnings may be needed.  Below are the river levels for N. IL and S. WI:

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