Raindrops Not 'Teardrop' Shaped And More You Didn't Know

The recent siege of severe thunderstorms, tornadoes and flooding rain in parts of the Midwest and South has ended as a drier, less volatile weather pattern settles in during the first full week of April.

A Frenetic Stretch

From March 29 through April 5, there were over 1,700 reports of severe weather in the nation, primarily in a zone from the Midwest and Ohio Valley to the Mississippi Valley and Plains. That included 44 confirmed tornadoes from March 30-31 and a still yet-to-be-determined number of twisters since April 1.

Then there's the flooding. On top of the serious flash flooding we saw late last week into the weekend, about 40 river gauge locations have hit or are forecast to hit major flood stage, according to National Weather Service data.

The Siege Of Storms Has Ended

While river flooding will continue in some larger rivers into the week ahead, the threat of heavy rain and severe weather has ended in the storm-fatigued Mississippi and Ohio valleys.

The week will begin with dry conditions in most areas.

Any Concerns Later In The Week?

We do expect some rain to return to the forecast around the middle of the week, lasting into Thursday or Friday, in the Midwest and parts of the South.

But these will likely be in the form of scattered showers and thunderstorms. There will be much less moisture available and they'll generally sweep through in a day or so, rather than the repeated rounds of heavy rain from the past several days.

Also, while some of these t-storms later in the week ahead could produce hail and strong wind gusts, the jet stream setup will not be conducive to the widespread outbreaks of severe weather and tornadoes we've seen recently.

(MAPS: Daily Rain, Snow Forecasts)

Since it is still April, this quieter pattern may not last long. But at least it allows the storm-fatigued areas a well-deserved break.

Jonathan Erdman is a senior meteorologist at weather.com and has been covering national and international weather since 1996. Extreme and bizarre weather are his favorite topics. Reach out to him on Bluesky, X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook.