Severe storms are moving across Indiana and the Cincinnati Tri-State this evening, ahead of a cold front that will knock temperatures down by about 20 degrees overnight. The National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm watch until 11 p.m. Eastern for 28 counties in central Indiana, including Indianapolis, Carmel, Fishers and Terre Haute. The main threats are damaging wind gusts and hail, and forecasters say a brief tornado can’t be ruled out.
The storms are only the first part of this system. By Friday morning, wind chills will be in the 20s, and some areas could see their first snowflakes of the season.
When will severe storms hit Indiana and Cincinnati?
Timing depends on where you are, because the storms are moving from west to east. In central Indiana, WTHR expects storms to build between 4 and 5 p.m. and clear out before midnight. WISH points to roughly 4 to 8 p.m. as the main window for severe weather. In the Cincinnati area, storms are expected to arrive between about 6 p.m. and midnight, and rain could last into early Thursday.
Earlier this afternoon, the weather service in Indianapolis was already tracking strong storms moving east at 35 mph near the Illinois line, with wind gusts up to 50 mph and penny-sized hail.
How dangerous are tonight’s severe storms?
The overall risk is low, but that doesn’t mean it’s safe. The Storm Prediction Center placed parts of the lower Ohio and western Tennessee valleys under a marginal risk, warning of isolated hail, damaging winds and possibly a tornado from eastern Illinois into Indiana, Kentucky and middle Tennessee. That’s level 1 on a 5-level scale. WTHR’s Sean Ash warned viewers not to let the low number make them careless, since even a level 1 day can bring warnings…