Laura is now a post-tropical cyclone situated over West Virginia. It will continue moving to the east and go off the eastern seaboard later today. We say good riddance.
Sticky, Sweaty, Unbearable Humidity. Highs at 90 with dew points in the low 70s. Rain is iffy today. HRRR model shows a line of showers/storms moving south out of Kentucky and clipping the eastern part of our area later this evening.
Threats Today Include Heavy Rain, Gusty Winds, and Isolated Tornadoes
The remains of Tropical Depression Laura are spinning our way. The storm has finished its trek northward, and today it will set its eyes on Middle Tennessee and Southern Kentucky as it moves east. At daybreak, the storm was at the Arkansas/Tennessee state line.
At 6:54 PM Hurricane Laura was seen from space in the remaining sunlight, moving NW at 15 MPH, maximum sustained winds 145 MPH.
Those are 145 MPH sustained winds; the March 3 Nashville tornado peaked at these speeds. Hurricane Laura will ram through Louisiana like a wide EF-3 tornado, carving a huge damage swath.
This satellite image runs through 11:51 AM. Notice Laura in the Gulf (now a Cat 3 hurricane). Also notice cold cloud tops over Middle Tennessee indicating light rain.
A hefty downpour to our south this morning should weaken and scatter this afternoon as the energy works north. So says the HRRR model:
You remember those lower dew points we were seeing last week? The ones in the mid to upper 60s?
Yeah, those are gone.
Dew points are looking to to be in the lower 70s today, getting as high as 72° this afternoon. High temps will be around 91°. Now mix those together and we’ll get some heat index values reaching the mid to upper 90s.
