Multiday Outbreak Of Severe Weather, Including Tornadoes, Will Shift From Midwest To Plains

Severe Weather Outbreak Likely Friday

A multiday outbreak of severe weather will first strike the Midwest Friday before shifting to the Great Plains over the weekend and into early week.

Tornadoes – some possibly strong – damaging hail and destructive straight-line winds are all potential threats. Damaging tornadoes have already happened in parts of the Midwest, including in southeast Wisconsin Thursday.

A tornado moved through western and northern St. Louis, Friday afternoon. Latest news on this tornado can be found here.

Another significant tornado swiftly moved eastward through Kentucky near Hopkinsville, spawning a tornado emergency.

Other tornadoes were spotted near Sullivan, Indiana, and Marion, Illinois, which may have been a strong tornado according to radar.

(MORE: Tornado Safety Tips | What If No Basement | Dangers Of Severe Thunderstorms)

Friday Night's Forecast

-A tornado watch is in effect for southern Illinois, central and southern Indiana, western Kentucky and southeastern Missouri until 10 p.m. CDT, including Indianapolis and Louisville.

-A tornado watch is in effect for southeastern Indiana, eastern Kentucky, southern Ohio, western West Virginia until 3 a.m. EDT, including Lexington, Kentucky; and Columbus and Cincinnati, Ohio.

-A tornado watch is in effect for northern Arkansas, far northern Mississippi, the Missouri Bootheel and western Tennessee until 2 a.m. CDT, including Little Rock and Memphis.

-A tornado watch in in effect for Middle and eastern Tennessee and far western Virginia, until 3 a.m. CDT, including Nashville and Knoxville, Tennessee.

-Severe thunderstorm watches are also in effect in parts of Texas, including Dallas, and parts of the northern Appalachians.

You can track the storms here using our maps.

-An outbreak of severe storms is expected in the Ohio and mid-Mississippi valleys through the night, as shaded in the red areas below. That includes Cincinnati, Indianapolis, Louisville, Kentucky, and Nashville.

-Damaging hail the size of tennis balls or larger, high winds gusting over 75 mph and tornadoes are all potential threats. Some tornadoes could be long-lasting and intense.

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-Other severe storms could extend as far southwest as the Ark-La-Tex and central Texas.

Weekend-Early Week Forecast

There is a potential for an outbreak of severe thunderstorms on one or more days, particularly from Sunday through Tuesday.

-Saturday: Scattered severe storms could impact parts of the East, from New York state to North Carolina, as well as parts of the South, particularly Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas. Wind damage and large hail are the primary hazards, but an isolated tornado is possible.

-Sunday: The biggest threat of severe storms will shift into the Central and Southern Plains, as shaded in orange and red below.

The storms could bring a significant threat of tornadoes, some possibly strong, as well as wind damage and large hail, particularly from central Kansas into Oklahoma. Oklahoma City, Tulsa, and Wichita are a few of the cities that should keep a close eye on the forecast for Sunday.

-Monday: The primary threat of severe weather will remain parked over the Central and Southern Plains to perhaps as far north and east as southern Iowa, much of Missouri and northwest Arkansas.

The greatest chance of supercell thunderstorms that could spawn strong tornadoes, damaging hail and high winds is in central and eastern Oklahoma into southeast Kansas. That includes Oklahoma City and Tulsa, again.

-Tuesday: Severe weather may shift farther east toward the Ark-La-Tex and mid-Mississippi Valley. It's too early to determine specific impacts, so check back to The Weather Channel App and weather.com for updates on this forecast through the next several days and we'll provide more information.

Severe Weather Recap

This latest rash of severe weather has already spawned several tornadoes in the Midwest Thursday, particularly in Wisconsin.

An EF2 tornado was confirmed in northwest Wisconsin near New Richmond. In southeast Wisconsin, at least one damaging tornado tore through parts of Dodge County, including the towns of Juneau and Mayville.

In southern Michigan, a pair of EF0 tornadoes were confirmed near and north of Battle Creek Thursday.

Damaging wind gusts measured included 79 mph near Gardner, Illinois, 76 mph at Battle Creek, Michigan, and 73 mph near Thief River Falls, Minnesota.

The storms knocked out power to 400,000 customers from Minnesota to Michigan and Indiana early Thursday, according to poweroutage.us.

Softball size hail - 4 inches in diameter - was reported near Altoona, Wisconsin, just east of Eau Claire.

Chris Dolce has been a senior digital meteorologist with weather.com for nearly 15 years after beginning his career with The Weather Channel in the early 2000s.