Severe ‘supercell’ thunderstorms possible Friday

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — Severe “supercell” thunderstorms are possible Friday. That’s what we call rotating thunderstorms that can produce large hail, severe wind gusts, and tornadoes.

We expect the sky to stay cloudy with an occasional brief shower possible through Friday morning. Temperatures will hold steady in the mid to upper 60s.

You’ll really want to stay weather aware during the afternoon and evening hours. That’s when we’ll have our greatest risk of severe thunderstorms. We expect scattered supercell thunderstorms to develop in the afternoon then move out by evening. Then our attention will turn to the west as a line of potentially severe storms develops over Central Texas and sprints our way. While it is difficult to pinpoint exactly when and where the supercells could track during the afternoon, the line of storms in the evening should reach Houston and the HWY 59 corridor around 10PM. Once those storms clear out in the early morning hours of Saturday, the rest of the weekend looks fantastic.

What are my chances of getting a severe thunderstorm Friday?
Right now we have the rain chance at 80%, but your chance of being near a severe thunderstorm is only 15%. Hail larger than golf balls, wind gusts over 65 mph, tornadoes, and a quick 1-3″ of rain will be possible in any severe storms that pop up.

How does the weekend look?
The rain should clear out before sunrise Saturday, leaving us with lower humidity and lots of sunshine for the rest of the weekend. Temperatures will still manage to climb into the mid 80s Saturday despite the north breeze behind the front. Sunday looks spectacular with lows in the 50s and highs in the 80s.