Tornadoes, fierce winds and severe thunderstorms with large hail are predicted for the Midwest and for the Plains, from the Ozarks eastward to the lower Ohio Valley, on Thursday and Friday, the National Weather Service said.
Severe weather is perilous anytime, of course, but CNN meteorologist Chad Myers says that tornado conditions are more dangerous during the night. “Tornadoes can be more deadly when people are sleeping and not paying attention to the warnings,” he said.
Scattered storms will soak Illinois and Missouri, and wind and hail will continue to be moderate in those states, the National Weather Service said. By Thursday afternoon, storms will hit parts of Indiana and Kentucky.
Earlier this week, severe weather struck the South. Alabama, Arkansas, Oklahoma and Georgia reported large hail.
Residents in Shawnee, Oklahoma, were awakened early Wednesday morning by a severe storm producing golf ball-sized hail.
“The hail came out of nowhere so it was kind of shocking,” Sherri McDonald said to CNN in an iReport.
The hail dinged her car.