The snowfalls might be long over in most of the U.S., but that doesn’t mean severe weather is necessarily finished.
In fact, it could play havoc with air travel this week in the south and central portions of the country.
Forecasters are calling for violent thunderstorms and potential tornado activity in those parts of the country as Mother Nature apparently forgot the axiom that April showers bring May flowers – not more showers.
As of 9 a.m. this morning, there were already 329 flights delayed within, into, or out of U.S. airports, according to the flight tracking service FlightAware.
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“Tuesday and Wednesday may be big days for severe weather including strong tornadoes,” said AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Alex Sosnowski.
Storms into Tuesday night from southeastern Colorado and far eastern New Mexico to western and central Texas, Oklahoma and southern Kansas were expected to bring furious rain, damaging winds, hail and the potential for tornadoes.
And it could last for 72 hours and start manifesting itself in bigger cities.
“The severe weather threat on both Wednesday and Thursday will shift away from the wide-open spaces of the High Plains to the more heavily populated areas on the lower Plains and the Mississippi and Ohio valleys,” Sosnowski said.
San Antonio, Dallas, Oklahoma City, Kansas City and Little Rock are all at risk for storms, meaning potential delays at such large airports as Dallas-Fort Worth and at Kansas City International.
But it’s not just air travel. Heavy downpours can lead to poor visibility while driving, and large hail can damage vehicles.
According to Accuweather, the severe storm risk will push eastward at midweek, targeting the I-35 corridor, mainly between I-10 and I-70.