The National Weather Service of the Quad Cities has issued several messages regarding a storm expected to bring heavy winds, a fast-moving thunderstorm, and embedded tornadoes to the region.
Winds are to be strong in locations all around the Quad Cities—even farther north, closer to Dubuque—as well as points headed south toward Burlington, which is where winds will be strongest.
Meterologist Justin Schultz anticipates a 9:00 p.m. start time for the severe weather, expecting the line of thunderstorms to come to pack a punch with straight-line winds. They’ll be coming from the southwest and northeast. He says powerful wind gusts are bound to blow through the area.
“It’s entirely possible that this system is, really, quite intense. So we are expecting widespread wind gusts—potential of 70-to-80-miles-per-hour wind gusts, or even stronger than that,” Schultz said.
The National Weather Service has put out a wind advisory, and it’s in effect from Friday, 3/14, starting at 1:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m. Saturday. There’s an active fire weather watch, too.
Schultz said the storm will begin to move through the area later into the afternoon. There’s also a threat of embedded tornadoes. The overall speed of the storm is noteworthy, as well, as computer models at the NWS read that the storm’s motions could be closer to 60 mph.
Schultz says seeking shelter will become crucial. Since the systems are expected to move rather quickly, people throughout the region should prepare for the similar effects of a summer-season storm. Drivers can expect travel difficulties.
“Since they will be moving so fast, people won't have quite as much time to seek shelter. So we want people to be very cognizant about the storms, as they're expected to develop during the late afternoon and evening hours, so that way people can seek shelter,” Schultz said.
Schultz says the storms will threaten the stability of trees everywhere, cautioning that some might be knocked over, uprooted, or snapped at the base. With the expected winds to be heavy, he says there’s a growing concern for a higher risk of fires. Scott County has already issued a burn ban, along with Muscatine County. Both the Rock Island Fire Department and Iowa State Fire Marshal's Office stated that open burning endangers life and property, especially during times of severe weather.
“With the dry fuels in place, the dry grasses, and brushes, coupled with these winds, it can pose a very dangerous fire threat across the region. We're going to look at the potential for perhaps upgrading to a red-flag warning, because of the volatile fire-spread conditions,” Schultz said.
More information about tomorrow’s storm can be found here.
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