[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zFUW81ZE2mE&w=480&h=360]

SEVERE WEATHER: There is a slight risk of severe weather for this afternoon and tonight for areas southwest of a Sioux City to Keokuk line. The main threats will be large hail especially over the southwestern counties. Damaging winds are also possible with an isolated tornado possible mainly over northern Missouri. Storms will fire during the late afternoon and evening and move across the area. Some moderate to heavy precip will be possible but flooding isn’t likely. The storm will be out of the state by the mid-morning hours.

NEXT SYSTEM: Up until the next system moves in, temperatures will warm well into the 70s for the weekend. The next system moves in with more chances of showers and thunderstorms. It’s too early to determine severe weather with this system, but there could be some isolated strong storms. The model is showing temperatures dropping back to average following the storm next week even though it’s not as strong as in earlier model runs.

ACTIVE APRIL: The GFS continues to show several storms in the first two weeks of April. It also shows that temperatures will be at or slightly above average with no real cold snaps or freezes upcoming.