Dry stretch comes to an end Monday night

 

Temperatures Monday afternoon warmed into the low to mid 70s, reaching 75 degrees in Rockford, rising well above the average high of 49 degrees.  This mid-May warmth will be short-lived, however, as increasing cloud cover and rain showers return Monday night and Tuesday.

For the remainder of Monday evening, skies will be dry as temperatures slowly fall back through the 60s.  Cloud cover will continue to thicken through the evening as a storm system lifts northeast from the southern Plains.  Ongoing severe weather has been occurring across Texas where numerous severe thunderstorm and tornado warnings have been issued.  No severe weather is expected for us overnight, but an increase in rain showers will occur.

Skies are dry through Midnight as rain lifts north from Missouri, reaching the Stateline between 2am and 5am.  The rain will be steady through Tuesday morning before becoming a little more scattered during the afternoon.  Southeast winds gusting to around 30 mph at times are expected during the afternoon with temperatures rising into the low to mid 50s.  Still a little above average, but not the most ideal day to get out and enjoy.

As low pressure moves closer to northern Illinois Tuesday night rain will begin to pick up in intensity, lasting into the overnight.  Scattered showers and drizzle will continue Wednesday as the center of the low moves across northern Illinois.  A few rumbles of thunder are possible southeast of the immediate Stateline.  Highs on Wednesday warm to around 50 degrees before cooler air wraps in Wednesday night and Thursday.  Scattered showers will begin to taper off Thursday but not before possibly mixing in a few snowflakes during the morning.  Highs on Thursday only warm to 41 degrees. 

We see a quick rebound in temps Friday ahead of a fast moving clipper system that'll dive southeast Friday afternoon.  This could bring some light snow to parts of the region Friday night, into early Saturday.  Temperatures heading into the weekend remain below average with highs only warming to the mid 40s.

Rainfall totals between Tuesday and Thursday are forecast to range between half an inch, up to an

inch, throughout much of the Stateline, especially if the transport of moisture isn't disrupted too much from the thunderstorms in the south.  With the warmer weather lately the frost in the ground has pretty much been eliminated, which will allow the rain to soak in.  However, there may be some noticeable rises on some of the local creeks and streams across the region.