PENNSYLVANIA — A severe weather threat is in place across southern Pennsylvania Tuesday, with the greatest risk expected between 11:30 a.m. and 8:30 p.m. Forecasters say isolated to scattered strong storms will be capable of producing any severe weather hazard, including damaging winds of 50 to 70 mph, large hail, and a weak tornado or two.
Extensive morning cloud cover and showers across western and central Pennsylvania are expected to limit how widespread today’s severe threat becomes, keeping the setup more scattered than some recent severe weather days across the state.
Zone 2 Carries Highest Risk Across Southern Pennsylvania
Zone 2 covers a scattered 30 to 50 percent chance for strong to severe thunderstorms this afternoon and evening, spanning southwestern Pennsylvania near Pittsburgh and Washington through a separate stretch covering Harrisburg, Reading, Lancaster, and Philadelphia. The greatest risk includes locally damaging wind gusts of 55 to 70 mph and quarter-sized hail.
If supercells develop within this zone, brief tornadoes are possible due to high wind shear and favorable tornado dynamics, though forecasters lean toward these staying in the EF0 to EF1 range.
Zone 1 Covers Central and Northern Pennsylvania
Zone 1 carries an isolated 10 to 30 percent chance for strong to severe thunderstorms, covering much of central and northern Pennsylvania including State College, Williamsport, and Scranton. Locally damaging wind gusts of 45 to 60 mph and some hail are the primary concerns…