Omaha is in for a two-part weather day, and the second act is the one to watch. The morning began wet, with a line of storms dragging heavy rain and today as a heightened-alert day because a stronger, potentially severe round of storms is expected to fire up in the evening, carrying the risk of damaging winds, large hail and even an isolated tornado.
The overnight and early morning hours already delivered a taste of it. The National Weather Service in Omaha issued a string of severe thunderstorm warnings for counties west and northwest of the city, including areas near Wahoo, Prague and Colon, with hail ranging from quarter to ping-pong-ball size. Most of the morning rain was expected to clear before 9 a.m., leaving only spotty showers and an isolated storm through the afternoon.
Why the Omaha evening round is the real concern
The bigger threat builds later in the day. After the morning storms move out, heat and humidity are expected to surge back quickly, helped by a gusty south wind reaching 40 mph that pushes temperatures into the 80s and even near 90. That combination of heat, moisture and wind is exactly the fuel severe storms feed on.
After about 5 p.m., a new round is forecast to develop along an approaching cold front and sweep through the metro, roughly between 6 and 9 p.m. Forecasters warn these storms carry a real potential to turn severe, with the strongest cells possible north of Interstate 80.
The hazards to prepare for
Local meteorologists have outlined the full range of possible impacts for the evening storms. The main threats are damaging winds, which could gust as high as 75 mph, and large hail, potentially reaching hen-egg size in the most intense cells…