It’s a South issue! Severe storms & flooding

Good news and bad news! First the good. The area at risk of severe weather has shrunk even more. Now the bad. There will be lots of rain over a large area in the South that could lead to flooding on Thursday.

The severe storm risk, although smaller, is still there and focused on the Florida Panhandle. There is a 1 out of 5 risk on the severity scale of experiencing isolated severe storms from Tallahassee to Panama City Beach.

The severe risk shrunk as the surface conditions have remained more stable than initially predicted, but the deep moisture and instability will still be present across the Florida Panhandle. As the storms feed off the deep moisture coming in from the Gulf of Mexico, they will affect the Panhandle between 10 p.m. Thursday and 5 a.m. Friday. The main threat will be damaging winds in this area.

As the low-pressure-pressure system moves, hugging the Gulf Coast, a trough will aid the development of heavy rain across the Lower Mississippi River Valley including Louisiana, and extending through northern Georgia. Overall, there could be up to 3 inches of rain falling over the area mentioned, but isolated higher amounts are possible.

In Mississippi, important highways like I-55, I-20, and I-59 could experience some flooding through the evening. Please be aware of low-lying areas and urban areas where flooding is more prone.

Make sure you avoid driving through floodwaters, even if they are in areas frequently traveled through. Water could be deeper than expected and your vehicle could stall or float away.