Severe storms that brought deadly tornadoes to South are now moving east
Written by ABC Audio. All rights reserved. on December 10, 2023
The storm system that brought deadly tornadoes to the South is now moving east, bringing threats of rain and hail with it.
A tornado watch remained in effect for millions of people in parts of Alabama, Georgia and the Florida panhandle on Sunday morning, according to the National Weather Service, after six people were killed and dozens more injured from tornadoes that touched down in Tennessee on Saturday.
As this line of storms continues to push east, they have a likelihood to remain strong to severe in strength, as well, forecasts show. The chance for tornadoes and damaging wind will continue to spread toward the East Coast on Sunday.
An observed tornado passed through the southern suburbs of Raleigh, North Carolina, around 12:45 p.m. ET, just before a tornado watch in the region expired at 1 p.m.
Severe weather threats will continue throughout Sunday into parts of the Carolinas.
The areas with a slightly higher risk of seeing the strongest storms include Wilmington and Greenville in North Carolina. Places like Jacksonville, Florida; Charlotte, North Carolina; Baltimore and Washington, D.C., will also have the chance of strong storms.
In addition, more than 50 million people from Virginia to Maine will be under flood watch due to torrential downpours. Some of the areas in upper New England, mainly New Hampshire and Maine, that have seen significant snowfall the last couple of weeks will be seeing warm rain Sunday that will melt some of that snow and add to the flood threat, forecasts show.
The 1 p.m. ET NFL game between the Los Angeles Rams and the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium is expected to be rain-soaked with some lightning, as well.
By 5 p.m. Sunday, storms will be over Jacksonville, Tampa and up the Georgia coast into South Carolina, forecasts show.
The flood threat will be greatest Sunday evening and overnight, as torrential rain pours across the I-95 corridor. Significant ponding on roads is likely, and winds will be gusting up to 50 mph, causing terrible driving conditions all night.
Flooding is especially possible from the New York City area through Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and into Maine.
By 7 a.m. Monday, heavy rain will be moving through the East Coast from Atlanta to Boston and Maine. Snow is expected to fall on the backside of this system, through much of upstate New York and Vermont, as well as Pennsylvania. Up to 18 inches of accumulation is possible along the Canadian border.
The system will be out by 7 p.m. Monday and will only have lingering lake-effect snow from the northwesterly winds, forecasts show.
On Saturday, there were at least 21 tornadoes reported in Tennessee, Kentucky, Mississippi and Alabama, several of which were large, powerful and extremely destructive.
Six people died and at least 36 others were injured Saturday as a result of tornadoes in Tennessee, according to officials.
The National Weather Service will conduct surveys in the coming days to determine the strength, size, path and rating of the tornadoes.
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