Weather in Pittsburgh quiets down on Wednesday after a stormy start to the day
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - Did your phone wake you up last night with a tornado warning?
A strong thunderstorm rolled through the center of our area, including places like Pittsburgh and Greensburg. The cell at times showed clear rotation on radar, an indication that a tornado was possible. Add in the presence of a strong "debris field" has given the NWS the confidence to declare that we did indeed see at least one tornado.
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A debris field happens when items are flung into the air because of a tornado. This causes high reflectivity or a "bright 'spot" on the radar. For a debris field to happen so far away from the location of radar is impressive. You'd expect to see storm damage that is extensive.
That is indeed what we are seeing.
The first report came in from Irondale, Ohio. The potential tornado spun through at around 1 a.m. Irondale is just a mild or two from the banks of the Ohio River. It's about an hour's drive from downtown Pittsburgh. Then at around 1:13 a.m., we had another Fairhaven, WVa.
KDKA reporter Megan Shinn is reporting mobile homes being damaged including broken windows.
Looking ahead, by the time you're reading this, our rain chances will be back near 0%. Highs today should be around 80 degrees. Morning lows are in the mid to upper 60s. We will see more clouds this morning with sunshine winning out this afternoon. I have noon temperatures in the mid to low 70s.
Thursday is now a First Alert Weather Day due to two chances for strong storms.
Right now it looks like storm chances peak in the afternoon hours on Thursday with strong winds the biggest concern. Downpours and plentiful lightning should also be expected.
This is another time where we have to say tornadoes and large hail are certainly possible, but not expected. I have Thursday highs significantly warmer than model data is indicating, with Pittsburgh seeing a high of around 75°.
The rest of the week will be cooler with highs just in the 60s on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.
Light rain and drizzle are expected to stick around through the weekend too.
While it would be unusual, there does also appear to be a storm chance on Saturday.
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