Severe weather kicks back into high gear across South

Following a stretch of winterlike cold, spring is fighting back again across the South, with a dangerous start to the weekend continuing Saturday from parts of Mississippi to the Carolinas as heavy rain and thunderstorms rumble across the region.

On Friday morning, some areas of the Southeast were under freeze warnings and frost advisories, with several cities dipping to below-normal and even record-challenging temperatures. One of those cities was Memphis, Tennessee, which reported a low of 37 degrees Fahrenheit, breaking the old record of 39 from 1927.

However, conditions have flipped, and storms bringing hail, damaging winds, flooding downpours and even tornadoes will continue to threaten the region through the first half of the weekend.

This image is of the freeze warnings (darker blue) and frost advisories (lighter blue) in effect on Friday morning, April 23, 2021, and shows the extreme cold in place before storms develop in the Southeast over the weekend.

Humidity levels increased on Friday across the southern Plains as the Gulf of Mexico fed moisture into the region, and a warm front swept through.

Thunderstorms began to fire up across Texas first on Friday afternoon. At least one tornado tore through Hardeman and Wilbarger counties, about 40 miles west of Wichita Falls, Texas, late Friday afternoon.

Hail as large as 3.5 inches in diameter -- nearly equivalent to the size of a softball -- fell over parts of Foard County, Texas, around 5:45 p.m. CDT on Friday. Parts of Hardeman and Willbarger also had notable-sized hailstones ranging from 2 to nearly 3.37 inches in diameter, according to NOAA's Storm Prediction Center Storm Reports.

In total, the National Weather Service received 100 reports of severe weather Friday and Friday night, stretching from Texas to the far western Florida Panhandle.

This radar image, taken early Saturday morning, April 24, 2021, shows severe storms moving across the Southeast. (AccuWeather)

As of Saturday morning, rain and thunderstorms have shifted east, bringing the threat for severe weather to much of the central and eastern Gulf Coast states, as well as portions of the Carolinas.

"The threat for damaging wind gusts, large hail, flooding downpours and tornadoes will remain possible with any of the storms through the day Saturday and into Saturday night," AccuWeather Meteorologist Ryan Adamson said.

"Parts of Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia that have already seen one round of heavy rain and locally severe thunderstorms Saturday morning should not let their guard down Saturday afternoon or evening," warned AccuWeather Meteorologist Jake Sojda.

"More storms are expected to develop later Saturday, and could pack just as much of a punch, with damaging winds, hail and tornadoes being a threat once again."

There have only been 34 tornadoes reported across the United States so far this April, according to the Storm Prediction Center (SPC), compared to the average number of 224 tornadoes for the month.

By the evening hours, storms will also stretch from the Carolina coast to Jacksonville, Florida, before moving offshore overnight.

With some areas expected to have multiple bouts of heavy rain and potent thunderstorms, there is also a heightened concern for flash flooding across much of the Southeast. Much of the region is already waterlogged. With the potential for several inches of additional rainfall in some locales, forecasters warn that the flash flooding threat will be just as much of a concern as severe thunderstorms.

In the heaviest downpours, the AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 8 inches could be achieved Saturday, according to AccuWeather meteorologists.

The city of Shreveport has received more than its normal rainfall this April, measuring over 5 inches of rain total. Jackson, Mississippi, is in a similar situation, measuring an April total thus far of 5.41 inches of rain. Typically, this area gets 3-5 inches of rain total in April.

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As of early Friday morning, the Ouchita River at Felsenthal Lock and Dam in Arkansas was at minor flooding stage, along with several other locations across the region. This includes multiple spots along the Mississippi River between Louisiana and Mississippi.

"Given that much of Louisiana to Alabama and the Florida Panhandle has received 125-300% of normal rainfall over the last 30 days, any additional heavy rainfall in this area will lead to rivers swelling quickly with a saturated ground," Pastelok said.

Those planning to travel on Saturday are recommended to be extra cautious. Motorists should never cross a flooded roadway. Even if the water seems shallow, drivers are urged to turn around and find an alternate route.

Drivers traveling at higher speeds across portions of interstates 10, 20 and 35 will need to reduce speeds during any downpours to prevent hydroplaning, according to AccuWeather Meteorologist Mary Gilbert.

The storm in the South Saturday will move through the mid-Atlantic Saturday night and continue on its northeast track for Sunday, remaining south and east of New England, according to Pastelok. This would bring a soaking rainfall to the Northeast and mid-Atlantic, especially to the Interstate-95 corridor.

By Sunday and Monday, there will be a reprieve in the South from severe thunderstorms, but forecasters say it could be brief. Yet another severe event is expected to arrive next week in southern parts of Tornado Alley, a zone from Texas to South Dakota that has often been a target of violent storms over the decades.

The potent setup will bring the potential severe thunderstorms to the eastern Plains into the central Gulf Coast between Tuesday and Thursday, according to Pastelok.

"The storm's cold front will trigger the threat of torrential downpours, potentially damaging wind gusts," said AccuWeather Meteorologist Nicole LoBiondo. Moisture from the Gulf of Mexico will add fuel to the thunderstorms that ignite.

While not currently expected to mirror the event in scope or intensity, the severe weather danger next week would coincide with the 10th anniversary of the Super Tornado Outbreak of 2011. More than 300 people were killed and more than 2,900 were injured as a result of the that devastating outbreak.

"Late April and May is usually the most active period of severe weather in the U.S. It's not uncommon for there to be at least one, if not multiple areas where severe weather can occur multiple times a week in central and eastern portions of the country," explained AccuWeather Storm Warning Meteorologist Mike Youman. AccuWeather forecasters say the upcoming weeks look to be no exception.

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