Minnesota’s Weather Authority’s attention is turning to the next approaching wave of low pressure as it looks to bring the next round of thunderstorms, some of which could be severe, by late Thursday afternoon.

Early Thursday afternoon, the Storm Prediction Center upgraded the area including and surrounding the Twin Cities metro to an ENHANCED RISK of severe weather (Level 3 out of 5) for severe weather. During the morning hours, that area, as well as the counties surrounding it in nearly all of central and eastern Minnesota, along with western Wisconsin, were under a SLIGHT RISK (Level 2 out of 5).

The enhanced risk means there is a chance for 70+ mph winds, large hail, flooding and possibly a strong tornado.

Thursday started dry, but clouds and humidity will increase across much of the state throughout the afternoon. Temperatures are expected to reach the lower to mid-80s. By the afternoon hours, a cold front could lead to rapidly developing storms, some of which could be severe with high winds and hail. A tornado can’t be completely ruled out.

Meteorologist Jonathan Yuhas provided the following timeline of when to expect storms in your area:

• 2 p.m. – A line of storms stretching from Fergus Falls to Marshall and Worthington is expected to form and move east.
• 4 p.m. – The storms will be in a line from Bemidji to Brainerd, Alexandria, Willmar, Redwood Falls and Fairmont.
• 5 p.m. – Storms should be moving into the Mille Lacs, St. Cloud, Buffalo, Mankato and Albert Lea areas around this time.
• 6 p.m. – Suburbs in the western Twin Cities should start seeing activity.
• 7 p.m. – Storms are expected to be inside of the I-494/694 loop, including the State Fair.
• 8 p.m. – Counties in western Wisconsin will start seeing activity around this time.

STORM THREATS: As mentioned, the greatest risk factors are high winds in excess of 70 miles per hour, and hail in excess of 1 inch in diameter, and tornadoes are all on the leading edge of the storms. In addition, isolated rainfall totals could reach 1-2″.

TIPS TO PREPARE: Charge your cell phones ahead of the storm, check basement sump pumps and make sure you have working batteries and flashlights.

As always, details may change throughout the day. Stay tuned to Minnesota’s Weather Authority for updates. Make sure to download the KSTP app for all of your streaming devices to get the latest weather alerts for your area. You can do so by CLICKING HERE.

If you’re able to safely take photos or videos of severe weather, you can share them with KSTP by CLICKING HERE. An interactive radar can be found HERE, and the latest forecast HERE.