BLOG: Happy Easter!
After an isolated early shower in northeast Maryland, sunshine and warm air made for a gorgeous morning around the state. That sunshine held on for most of the day, warming us all the way up to 84 degrees this afternoon. However, with a stalled out front over the state, that sunshine and warm air were enough to spark another round of thunderstorms.
Thunderstorms started to fire during the afternoon over the mountains on Virginia then really gained strength as they marched eastward through northern Virginia into central Maryland. There was even a tornado warning for Montgomery County, but the rest of the counties in this area and the northern Eastern Shore went through at least one round of severe thunderstorm warnings. Trees were downed in Howard County, 1" hail was reported near Crofton, and 3/4" hail fell near Norbeck, Montgomery County. Elsewhere, there were gusty winds and heavy rain as these storms rolled through. If you were watching the O's game right here on WJZ, you saw just how black the sky got right before the storms came in to cause the rain delay in the extra innings.
The strongest thunderstorms have lost their peak strength, but there are still showers and thunderstorms scattered around the state. And, there are even a few more batches of showers and thunderstorms upstream along this front in Kentucky and West Virginia. They will die down as they move our way, but some may hold together enough to bring us some additional showers or a rumble of thunder overnight.
The front causing all of this stormy weather will be stalled out just to our north tomorrow. It may not be on top of us, but it will be close enough to spark a round of showers or thunderstorms - mainly later in the day. Otherwise, we will stay in the warm air with highs in the 80s and will be in this air mass through Wednesday. At the same time, a new area of energy will move along this stalled front. It will force the stalled front farther off to the north Tuesday before wrapping up as a new storm and moving through the Mid-Atlantic Wednesday and Thursday. That means that there is still the chance for a shower or thunderstorm Tuesday, although less of a chance. Then, the thunderstorm chances will increase once again Wednesday and Thursday. There could even be another round of severe weather during this time.
This storm will finally wrap up and move away Friday. When it does, it will take the warm air along with the stormy weather.
ATTENTION TEACHERS AND STUDENTS:
Our fourth annual Weather Field Trip Day at Camden Yards is right around the corner. This year, it will be Thursday, May 26. If you are unfamiliar with the program, it's a day full of fun. We start out with an action, graphics-filled weather program on the field that features helpers like Nicole Sherry (head groundskeeper), Chris Strong from the National Weather Service and, of course, the Bird. Then, everyone takes a lunch break before enjoying an afternoon Orioles game.
Click on this link for more information:
http://baltimore.cbslocal.com/2011/04/15/sign-up-your-school-for-field-trip-day-os-magic/
