Before we jump into the weather for today and beyond, an explanation. I was covering a race in Virginia Saturday which after hours of storm and track delays turned into an all-nighter. After being a zombie Sunday, I wasn’t up and ready for Monday. A semi-tropical low came up out of the Gulf of Mexico (not enough time to develop) and then swirled into Georgia and western North Carolina. This exact thing happened on a Monday last August and dropped a record number of tornado warnings in the Carolinas and Georgia. Should have been awake enough to realize trouble. But I was still a zombie with family stuff to tend to. After another herd of tornado warnings in my area, again, with a tornado touchdown in Chesnee, SC just over 1/2 hour from my position in Greenville, SC, I’ll be out to do a storm damage assessment later today.

Now to the weather at hand today and beyond: it’s a much quieter day across the Carolinas and the east coast today with cooler than normal temperatures, lots of clouds, and periods of light showers. The severe weather threat shifts west to Oklahoma and Texas this afternoon, heading into Louisiana and Arkansas this evening. Stay weather aware across the south-central US. That storm will become a huge rainmaker and soaker tomorrow for the lower Mississippi Valley, Thursday across the Southeast abe Ohio Valley, and Friday across the mid-Atlantic and the Northeast. This storm will have a lot more heavy rain with it and a lot lower threat of severe weather. Over the Memorial Day weekend, this storm spins down and weakens over the Northeast, keeping showers in the forecast Saturday before it dries out and warms up over the entire eastern US Sunday and for Memorial Day.

The next week will be particularly warm across the Great Lakes and Northeast. The warmth will also impact the Ohio Valley and Mid Atlantic. It stays abnormally cool across the Pacific NW and the northern Rockies. In this region of the nation, bone dry with a long-term drought, anything to keep away the blazing sun and hot temperatures are welcome. Even if only a temporary reprieve it’s better than nothing.