KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI — Meteorologists are closely monitoring an enhanced severe weather setup expected Friday afternoon and evening across the Central Plains into the Mid-Mississippi River Valley, where storms could bring damaging winds, large hail, and possible tornadoes from Oklahoma and Kansas through Missouri, Arkansas, Iowa and potentially Illinois.
Forecast guidance shows a bi-modal severe weather pattern, meaning storms may develop in multiple zones simultaneously, including along a crashing cold front, a sharpening dryline, and within the open warm sector ahead of the front.
Forecasters say the best chance for organized severe storms will occur near the advancing cold front as it moves southeast through the Plains late Friday afternoon and evening. However, isolated storms may develop earlier ahead of the front, especially across Kansas and Missouri, depending on how much daytime heating occurs.
Cold Front Storm Mode Could Produce Widespread Damaging Winds
The most certain severe weather scenario involves storms developing along the rapidly advancing cold front pushing from Nebraska and Kansas toward Missouri and Iowa…