As soon as spring has arrived, Mother Nature shows her unstable side. The best weeks have seen round after round of bad weather and storms sweep across the country. Fortunately for Louisiana, we largely escaped the wrath of the worst of the weather. That’s not to say we haven’t seen or will see our share in the coming days.
A cold front and associated storms are approaching Louisiana from the west this morning. This frontal system is expected to unleash another round of strong to severe storms over much of the state today. Forecasters believe the frontal system will eventually stall over southern or central Louisiana tomorrow. As the system sits on top of the region, various pulses of energy will move along the frontal boundary, triggering the threat of heavy rain and possible severe storms.
The Storm Prediction Center has most of the state north of US 190 in the low severe storm risk zone. The rest of southern Louisiana faces a low risk of severe weather during the day today. It looks like Friday’s thunderstorms will lessen in intensity, but there will still be plenty of rain in the area.
weather.gov/lch
weather.gov/lch
For today, the western half of the state remains under a wind warning. Forecasters say sustained winds of 20 to 25 mph will be common across the region today. Gusts of up to 35 km/h can also occur. This means that loose items such as rubbish bins, parasols, tree branches and other garden and garden decorations can be damaged or displaced by the strong breeze.
Johnny McClung via Unsplash.com
Johnny McClung via Unsplash.com
We should also note that drivers traveling along I-10, US 190, LA 14, and other east-west roads should expect strong crosswinds. This means vans, trucks and other high profile vehicles could be blown around by the strong breeze and maintaining lane control could become a problem.
KATC meteorologist Rob Perillo expects no heavy showers and storms in the Lake Charles and Acadiana area until at least Thursday morning. So today it will be breezy and warm with a chance of a few showers. The risk of rain increases until Thursday and with it the probability of stronger storms. But rain, and lots of it, could be a bigger problem before this storm system pulls out of the area over Easter weekend.
Rob Perillo/KATC.com
Rob Perillo/KATC.com
As you can see above, the precipitation forecast models used by Rob in his article published on the KATC website show almost five inches of rain for the Lafayette area. Keep in mind that this is a model projection and not an official forecast, but rainfall levels of 2 to 4 inches over the area will be common through Sunday afternoon.
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