JAMESTOWN – The NOAA Storm Prediction Center has placed the Southern Tier of Western New York under a less-than-average “Marginal” Risk for severe thunderstorms late this afternoon and evening.
The National Weather Service has upgraded the High Wind Watch to a High Wind Warning for Chautauqua, Erie Niagara, Orleans, Genesee, Monroe, and Wyoming Counties, going into effect Wednesday morning at 3:00 AM, and running through 8:00 PM Wednesday evening.
The High Wind Watch remains in effect for areas eastward, as it’s still a debate if winds will be as strong as they will be in the western areas.
A strong cold front will push through the region overnight tonight and early on Wednesday.
This front will create some very strong winds and some thundershowers as it moves along. You will notice an uptick in wind speed throughout the night tonight; likely averaging between 19 and 26 MPH, with higher gusts.
Winds will continue to become stronger as we work through the night. We’ll likely end up having sustained averages between 26 and 39 MPH, with wind gusts approaching 65 MPH at times.
This increase in wind leads us to the potential for some stronger thunderstorms during the night. It’s not out of the question that a couple storms could tap into the stronger winds associated with the front, and elevate themselves to strong or severe levels.
Keep in mind, while the overall threat for severe weather is low, the threat IS NOT zero. Even though the upper-air dynamics do not seem too unstable, the idea of an isolated strong to severe storm is plausible.
Temperatures may rise a couple of degrees overnight into the lower to mid 40s as the front approaches, but will fall throughout the day tomorrow as the front moves out. We’ll likely end the day in the upper 20s by the lake, and lower 30s inland.
As the temperatures fall, that will change rain to snow showers by the afternoon hours on Wednesday. Good news here is, we’re not expecting any snow accumulation out of that deal.
Snow and cold temperatures will take us through the reminder of the week, making it feel more like March than April.
Make sure you stay on top of the weather: Our team will keep you updated throughout the day and evening on our various social media platforms.
Also, make sure you have a good way of getting watches and warnings. I highly recommend a good smartphone app that is designed to push warnings.
The app I recommend is Weather Radio by WDT. The app uses your GPS location to determine if you are in warning, and if you are, you get sent the notification, and if you’re not, you don’t.
We get no kickback from WDT, but Weather Radio works very well, and might very well be the best weather warning app out there for iPhone and Android. It is the same app our team uses, and our families use.
