4/23 - 2pm - Severe Weather Outbreak on Saturday

A very serious severe weather situation is developing for Saturday across Mississippi and into Western and Central Alabama. Current indications are pointing toward a historic severe weather outbreak over much of the Deep and Mid South, with a swath of potentially large, long-tracked tornadoes from Mid Mississippi all the way to Birmingham, AL. The SPC has placed a large portion of the South under a MODERATE Risk of severe weather:

There may be areas that could go into a HIGH Risk threat tomorrow, particularly from Starkville to Columbus to Birmingham, AL. We'll see what happens as the setup develops tomorrow morning. Risks during this outbreak include large hail (up to baseball or larger size) and damaging winds in excess of 80mph along with the tornado threat.

After some non-severe storms tonight, severe weather should begin a bit after daybreak tomorrow around Starkville (including Mississippi State University) and most of East Mississippi. The tornado outbreak will most likely ramp up around 9 or 10am tomorrow and last through the early to mid afternoon hours as supercell thunderstorms transverse the region. During this time, everyone needs to be on alert and ready to take shelter in a basement or a central room without windows on a lower level should tornado sirens sound. At around 3 or 4pm, a squall line of severe, wind-driven thunderstorms will cross through and we should be in the clear once that is finished.

I don't think I've covered a severe weather event this big before, so it's going to be a very active day tomorrow. This is not a time to be scared, but one to be on alert. If everyone practices severe weather safety tomorrow (taking shelter in a basement or central room when a tornado siren is heard or if a tornado warning is issued), we can minimize the human impact of this outbreak. Stay alert!