DETROIT (WWJ) — Metro Detroit is bracing for more potential severe weather on Thursday, with a chance for damaging winds and even a tornado.
Last Wednesday a surprise tornado touched down in Livonia, killing a child and causing severe damage. On Thursday, all of Southeast Michigan is "a marginal to slight risk” of severe weather, according to the National Weather Service.
Isolated to scattered strong to severe thunderstorms will be possible, as well as a “low probability for a tornado,” NWS officials said.
Damaging winds and large hail are the primary threats, along with a possible tornado. Wind gusts could reach up to 60 mph or more, while hail could be more than an inch.
The storm system is expected to move NW to SE at 40 mph, according to the NWS, and AccuWeather meteorologist Brian Thompson says the largest threat of severe weather is expected to come between 3 p.m. and 8 p.m.
The National Weather Service has issued a Severe Thunderstorm Warning for parts of Macomb, Lapeer and St. Clair Counties, but it has since been canceled.
A Warning is in effect in much of West and Southwest Michigan until 8 p.m.
After last week’s tornado in Livonia came with little warning, Thompson told WWJ’s Tony Ortiz and Tracey McCaskill on this week’s “Weather Wednesday” that it’s “not completely out of the question” to see one on Thursday.
“The atmosphere is not particularly right for tornado development tomorrow, but it certainly can’t be ruled out in setups like tomorrow,” Thompson said. “We’re going to be watching a cold front coming down from the north and west and that typically leads to more lines of thunderstorms, which could bring some straight line wind damage, also some hail.”
But after it moves through, Thompson says it is “gonna quiet down quite a bit” for Friday and into Father’s Day weekend, with more sunshine and mainly dry weather. Temperatures are expected to be in the low 80s Friday and Saturday before climbing to the mid-80s on Sunday.
And then it’s time to prepare for some high summer heat. Out West, cities like Las Vegas and Phoenix have been dealing with temps as high as 110 degrees for a couple of weeks. Vegas has been nine degrees above average so far in June.
And now that heat is heading our way.
“The big ridge which has kind of been allowing the heat to sit (out West) is finally going to get pushed more to the east, so they’re gonna get a bit of a break from the heat out west over the next week,” he said.
After the weekend that ridge is going to start building into our area, bringing rising temps to Metro Detroit.
“We’re expecting highs into the 90s on Monday and there is the potential for 90-plus-degree temperatures for much of next week and perhaps even into next weekend,” Thompson said. “Not saying it’s gonna be 90 or more everyday, but certainly it’s looking more and more likely that we’re going to pick up a prolonged round of heat and perhaps a heatwave next week.”
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