2-Day Outlook

Depending on who you are, the next couple of days could be the best 2 days of your life, or the worst 2 days of your life. 

For Meteorologists, this storm is a blessing and a curse. That severe weather forecasting experience is going to come in very handy and the population's faith in meteorologists will be at a new high. For first-responders, this storm will be a nightmare. Flooding, large hail, high winds, and tornadoes possible and likely. As I am writing this, there are 6 tornadoes on the ground in Alabama. Below is a live feed of the national weather service radar.

To answer the burning question in some minds: Yes, I believe that this could be the storm similar to 3 years ago, though not as far north with the tornadoes. 

14 people have died in this storm so far in Arkansas and Oklahoma. Tornadoes are crushing towns and cities, removing all but the foundation of some houses and smashing cars through others. 

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2014/04/28/307636103/tornadoes-rip-through-arkansas-oklahoma-killing-at-least-17

There are stories of rescue coming from multiple states right now as people are recovered from rubble. Fortunately, Meteorologists have done a fantastic job forecasting and describing the positions of these killer twisters and many lives have been spared despite the wide-spread damage.

The storm is going to be severe enough here in NC that Storm Chaser Reed Timmer is going to be bringing his crew to Eastern NC in the hopes of intercepting a tornado or two. When the professionals come this far east, it means there is plenty of potential for serious weather. 

What does this mean? 

1. Get a tornado action plan ready. Figure out where you need to go, somewhere without outside walls or windows preferably under some sort of sturdy support (under a staircase in the middle of a house).

2. Stay tuned to your local weather stations, and have candles and flashlights ready as well as a batyery operated radio in the event of a power outage or cable tv going out.

3. HEED WARNINGS! Meteorologists do not dish out warnings in vain. Each warning is given due to serious, possibly deadly conditions and need to be taken seriously.

I just moved the radar image above from the website so it should update automatically. That way my blog will stay as updated as possible for the safety of my followers. In the image you can see the fast-moving cold front shoving the warm air mass upward into the upper atmosphere. This intense convergence of cold and warm air is causing a the severity of the storm. Tornadoes are forming in the frontal zone just east of that cold front (which is currently along the Mississippi River). Dozens of tornadoes have been spawned in OK, MO, AR, AL, MS, TN, and LA so far. 

Northern Midwest:

Also seen in the image above is an Occluded Front extending from the northern surface low to the West. This frontal zone is also allowing for severe thunderstorms to form and tornadoes and hail are still possible even as far North as Southern Wisconsin and Michigan so even you guys in the Northern Midwest should keep in touch with your local weather stations so that you have the most accurate up-to-date information for your area. The main portion of severe weather will be in the Southeast though.