Severe Thunderstorms Wednesday Evening

Our severe threat Wednesday night remains very low, but thunderstorms could be turning into more of a heavy rain threat tonight.  Very heavy rain falling in Lee and DeKalb counties.  Slow moving thunderstorms will likely produce rainfall amounts near one inch, possibly higher, before ending.  This could cause some minor flooding in low lying areas and ponding on the roads.

We have a lot of moisture still left in the atmosphere to help fuel these storms - roughly about 1.5".  Let's think of the atmosphere like a sponge.  If we were to wring out the atmosphere, we would essentially be wringing out nearly an inch and a half of rain.  Now that doesn't mean that's how much we'll see, but rather that's how much 'available' moisture we have in the atmosphere.  Which is a lot!  These storms should slowly drift to the north/northeast through Midnight before finally shifting east towards Chicago.





The Severe Thunderstorm Warning for Carroll and Whiteside counties has been canceled.  The storm has weakened below severe limits.  Monitoring thunderstorms just south of the area to possibly impact far southeastern Lee and DeKalb counties by 10pm

The National Weather Service has issued a Severe Thunderstorm Warning for Carroll and Whiteside counties until 8:45pm.  The current storm was located near Clinton, IA and moving east at 25 mph.  Wind gusts up to 60 mph and quarter sized hail will be possible.  Locations possibly impacted by the thunderstorm include: Sterling, Milledgeville, Chadwick and Thomson.

Higher instability resides along Carroll and Ogle counties and points south.  The storms in eastern Iowa will likely follow along the highest instability axis which takes it slightly to the south through southern Carroll and Ogle counties.