NWS monitoring severe storm threat Saturday-Tuesday in Minnesota
It's not going to be a weekend washout, but there will be a chance for strong and severe storms Friday night, Saturday night and again Sunday in parts of Minnesota, and then more storm chances potentially Monday and Tuesday.
The day with the greatest risk of severe storms is Sunday (though Monday and Tuesday could be up there, too), with the National Weather Service Storm Prediction Center already placing eastern South Dakota and a sizable area of Minnesota in an enhanced risk, which is level 3 of 5 on the severe scale.
"Confidence is increasing in significant severe for both Sunday and Monday for parts of the central and northern Great Plains into the Upper Midwest," says the Storm Prediction Center.
The stationary front will stall out between a cooler airmass to the west and a warm airmass to the south and east, putting Minnesota in line for stormy weather.
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On Friday night into the early morning hours Saturday, elevated storms could produce large hail. The National Weather Service in the Twin Cities says it could be central and northern Minnesota's best shot at strong storms.
Then on Saturday, storms are expected to fire in South Dakota and move into Minnesota along a strong lower-level jet, posing a risk again for large hail and damaging winds.
Saturday's severe weather threat areas.
There will be a stationary front that basically stalls out over Minnesota, meaning Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday could include severe storm chances. Here is Sunday's level 3 severe zone (in orange).
Monday, still five days out, is already being monitored with a severe risk area by the Storm Prediction Center.
Monday's severe weather risk area.
So again, based on what the weather service is saying, Friday night and Saturday night would be mainly hail threats, while surface based storms Sunday-Tuesday could produce rotating storms capable of dropping tornadoes. But that's a long way out and we'll have to continue updating the forecast.
"At either rate, if you have outdoor plans at all this weekend, make sure you have multiple ways to receive warnings and know where your nearest safe structure will be," the NWS Twin Cities says.
Meanwhile, expect the heat and humidity to climb all weekend into next week. It will likely be 90 degrees across southern Minnesota on Memorial Day.
