Another round of thunderstorms could bring damaging winds and heavy rainfall to Lincoln late Thursday night into early Friday morning, followed by cooler and drier weather for the weekend.
National Weather Service meteorologist Taylor Nicolaisen told KLIN the most significant storms are expected to arrive around midnight or shortly afterward.
“The big show, the main show, is going to be late tonight,” Nicolaisen said. “For the Lincoln area, we’re expecting this pretty significant wave of storms to work through probably about midnight, maybe one o’clock in the morning.”
Nicolaisen said the storms are expected to move southeast from central South Dakota and reach the Interstate 80 corridor, affecting Lincoln and Omaha at roughly the same time. The storms may form a broken line, however, leaving some locations with considerably less rain than others.
“Those storms will probably be producing some gusty winds—50, 60, 70 miles an hour—and that rain again will be heavy at times,” Nicolaisen said.
Localized flash flooding will also be possible. Nicolaisen said urban areas may face the greatest risk because pavement prevents heavy rainfall from soaking into the ground quickly.
The National Weather Service forecast for Lincoln calls for an 80 percent chance of precipitation Thursday night, with three-quarters of an inch to one inch of rain possible. Higher amounts could fall where thunderstorms repeatedly move across the same locations.
The storms should move through Lincoln relatively quickly.
“Those storms should be relatively quick,” Nicolaisen said. “They should be out of your area, you know, an hour later, and you can get back to sleep.”
10/11 Now also identifies Thursday night as the period with the best chance for severe weather. Its forecast says storms developing late Thursday afternoon or evening could become severe.
Conditions will turn cooler and windy Friday. The Weather Service forecasts a high near 83, with west-northwest wind gusts potentially reaching 36 mph. Friday night’s low is expected to fall to around 65.
“We expect to see behind the system for tomorrow highs only in the lower 80s, which is actually a little bit cool for the end of July,” Nicolaisen said. “We don’t mind that at all.”
Saturday should be sunny with a high near 84. Sunday will also be sunny, with a high near 88, before Lincoln returns to around 90 Monday.
Nicolaisen said the rainfall would be welcome after recent heat and worsening drought conditions across portions of the region.
“We’re glad to see the heat gone and love to soak up as much moisture as we can,” he said.