Warm, humid Thursday with strong to severe storms

The second cold front of the week will push warm, humid air ahead of it and touch off strong to severe storms later Thursday. Behind it will flow comfortable, cooler air for Friday.  

Very warm, humid Thursday ahead of strong to severe storms

The second cool front of the week is pushing warm, humid air out ahead of it for Thursday. We’ll see afternoon highs well into the 80s across southern Minnesota. Dew points will also be pretty humid, into the low 70s for southern Minnesota.

Spotty morning thunderstorms Thursday will largely fizzle out by midday making for a mix of clouds and sun.

As things heat up, we’ll see thunderstorms develop ahead of the front stretching from south to north in western Minnesota by mid-afternoon. Those storms will sweep east through the late afternoon and evening hours.

Storms that develop could become strong to severe with damaging wind gusts and large hail. An isolated tornado can’t be ruled out. There’s a slight risk (level 2 of 5) of severe storms forecast central and southern Minnesota.

While we could see a couple isolated tornadoes, the bigger threats will be from damaging wind gusts and large hail. Here’s a look at one particular forecast model’s wind gust projection through midnight:

Behind the front, northwest winds will blow in cooler and much drier air, making for a gorgeous Friday and holiday weekend. The humid air will move east and dew points in the 50s will settle in for Friday.

Highs Friday will be mostly in the mid-70s to near 80 degrees but with dew points in the 50s. 

A third cool front sweeps in — rather quietly — Saturday night, dropping temperatures even more. Highs Sunday and Monday will range from just the 60s in northern Minnesota to the low to mid-70s south. Mostly dry weather persists into next week.