Severe weather possible late Tuesday afternoon and Tuesday evening

Our thunderstorm chances will increase late Tuesday afternoon into Tuesday evening. Severe thunderstorms and heavy rain will be possible in eastern and southern Minnesota plus western Wisconsin. Make sure that you have a way to receive severe weather warnings as we go from late Tuesday afternoon through the evening hours.

The severe weather outlook from the National Weather Service Storm Prediction Center shows a slight risk of severe weather Tuesday afternoon through Tuesday night for much of eastern Minnesota (including the Twin Cities) plus western Wisconsin and most of Iowa:

The term “slight” is misleading, since it refers to the chance within a certain distance of any given point. Scattered severe weather is possible:

Large hail, damaging winds and a tornado are all possible in portions of eastern Minnesota and western Wisconsin:

Heavy rain is possible too:

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5 p.m. Update

A flash flood watch continues Tuesday evening and until 4 a.m. Wednesday for the Twin Cities metro area and parts of southern Minnesota and western Wisconsin::

456 PM CDT Tue May 26 2020 ...FLASH FLOOD WATCH IN EFFECT UNTIL 4 AM CDT WEDNESDAY... The National Weather Service in Twin Cities/Chanhassen has issued a * Flash Flood Watch for portions of Minnesota and Wisconsin, including the following areas, in Minnesota, Anoka, Blue Earth, Carver, Chisago, Dakota, Faribault, Hennepin, Isanti, Kanabec, Le Sueur, Ramsey, Rice, Scott, Waseca, and Washington. In Wisconsin, Barron, Polk, and St. Croix. * Through late tonight. * Scattered thunderstorms are expected to become concentrated along a cold front across eastern Minnesota into northwestern Wisconsin this evening. Heavy rainfall is likely in this corridor with localized totals of 3 to 4 inches, which could result in flash flooding. * Rapid water rises in creeks, streams, and low-lying areas are possible, along with urban flooding. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... A Flash Flood Watch means that conditions may develop that lead to flash flooding. Flash flooding is a very dangerous situation. Stay away or be swept away. River banks and culverts can become unstable and unsafe.

A flash flood watch runs from 7 p.m. Tuesday to 7 a.m. Wednesday from Pine county to southern St. Louis County and into northwestern Wisconsin:

349 PM CDT Tue May 26 2020 ...FLASH FLOOD WATCH IN EFFECT FROM 7 PM CDT THIS EVENING THROUGH WEDNESDAY MORNING... The National Weather Service in Duluth has issued a * Flash Flood Watch for portions of Minnesota and northwest Wisconsin, including the following areas, in Minnesota, Carlton and South St. Louis and Pine. In northwest Wisconsin, Ashland, Bayfield, Burnett, Douglas, Sawyer, and Washburn. * From 7 PM CDT this evening through Wednesday morning * Heavy rains may lead to 2 to 4 inches of new rainfall across portions of the watch area overnight. This may lead to localized flash flooding across poor drainage areas. * Area roads may become inundated with running water, and local creeks and streams may rise quickly. Never approach high rushing water during the overnight hours. Turn around, don`t drown. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... A Flash Flood Watch means that conditions may develop that lead to flash flooding. Flash flooding is a very dangerous situation. You should monitor later forecasts and be prepared to take action should Flash Flood Warnings be issued.

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A tornado watch covers much of Iowa until 8 p.m. CDT:

You can hear updated weather information on the MPR network, and you’ll see updated weather info on the MPR News live weather blog.