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Severe weather possible overnight in Charlotte area, Panovich says
An approaching cold front could fuel a strong thunderstorms during the overnight hours.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A line of strong thunderstorms could produce severe weather in the Charlotte area early Wednesday morning, with WCNC Charlotte Chief Meteorologist Brad Panovich saying it’s a day to be Weather Aware.
Panovich said the biggest threat will be damaging winds overnight, but you can’t rule out an isolated tornado or two as these storm storms push over the Carolinas. The storms are expected to move into the Carolinas late Tuesday night with the Charlotte area being at risk for severe weather from around 3 a.m. until 9 a.m.
The line is expected to roll into the North Carolina mountains by midnight Tuesday night, according to Panovich.
“For the mountains, midnight to 3 a.m. is your timeframe for these storms,” Panovich said. “For the Piedmont, we’re looking at a timeframe of maybe 3 a.m. to 6 a.m., with 6 a.m. plus or minus two hours being the main timeframe to watch.”
Storm timing
- Mountains: Midnight – 3 a.m.
- Foothills: 2 a.m. – 5 a.m.
- Charlotte metro: 3 a.m. – 6 a.m.
- East of Charlotte: 6 a.m. – 9 a.m.
Some of the storms could be strong enough to produce severe, damaging winds. While the tornado risk is low, Panovich said you can’t rule them out entirely.
“Definitely charge up your phone and have the volume turned up tonight because we could have some overnight and early morning storms that could pose some issues,” Panovich said.
The threat of storms will come at a time when most people will be sleeping. Devices like a NOAA weather radio can act like a smoke detector by sounding an audible alarm if and when a severe storm approaches your location. Severe weather alerts will also appear on all WCNC Charlotte platforms, including the WCNC Charlotte’s mobile app.
For the latest weather alerts, download the WCNC Charlotte mobile app and enable push notifications.
RAISE YOUR WEATHER IQ: How to receive severe weather warnings
This same line of storms produced severe weather west of the Carolinas on Monday and Tuesday. The storm system has already prompted storm warnings in locations such as Oklahoma on Monday. The line will push east toward Tennessee and Georgia Tuesday before moving into North Carolina and South Carolina during those predawn hours on Wednesday. Some of the storms could still be around during Wednesday morning’s rush hour commute. The storm threat moves into the coastal areas of the Carolinas later Wednesday.
Panovich will be tracking the developing forecast on WCNC Charlotte Tuesday night. Larry Sprinkle will have updates throughout the storm threat on Wednesday morning.
WCNC Charlotte’s Weather IQ YouTube channel gives detailed explainers from the WCNC Charlotte weather meteorologists to help you learn and understand weather, climate and science. Watch previous stories where you can raise your Weather IQ in the YouTube playlist below and subscribe to get updated when new videos are uploaded.