A strong cold front will continue to move through the north central U.S.. Scattered showers and thunderstorms will accompany the front as it dives southeastward and a well organized line thunderstorms, some strong to severe, is expected to develop along the front while it sweeps through the Upper Midwest Wednesday evening. By early Thursday the front should start crossing into the Great Lakes and Mid-Mississippi Valley. Temperatures behind the front will be noticeably lower.
A front slowly making its way towards the Atlantic Coast will bring another day of isolated showers and thunderstorms along the Eastern Seaboard. The tail end of the front will linger across the Lower Mississippi Valley and north Texas serving as a focal point for showers and thunderstorms Wednesday and Thursday.
There is a slight risk of severe thunderstorms across the North Central U.S and across the eastern seaboard from southern New England to South Carolina. Yesterday, there were over 50 reports of high wind and hail scattered along the East Coast States with a few reports from Alabama. Montana, Texas and California.
At 200 AM PDT the center of Tropical Storm Hector was located about 295 miles west-southwest of Socorro Island or about 525 miles southwest of the southern tip of Baja California. Hector has been meandering during the past few hours but the storm is expected to begin moving north-northwestward at about 5 MPH later today. Maximum sustained winds were near 40 MPH with higher gusts. Weakening is forecast and hector could become a tropical depression tonight or on Thursday.
There is a critical fire weather area for northern Kansas, eastern Nebraska, and western Iowa today. Red Flag Warnings have been issued for the northern Rockies and Great Plains.
