Active weather pattern from today into the weekend

A warm front is loitering over southern Minnesota and has been the focus for shower and thunderstorm activity since Monday. Occasional showers and thunderstorms will continue Tuesday evening into early Wednesday morning before we catch a break most of Wednesday. Tonight’s thunderstorms may be heavy at times, and like last night, may contain some pea to dime sized hail. There is a very slim chance that a storm or two may produce slightly larger hail, and if that’s the case we’ll have updates right here online and on-air.

Clouds will linger Wednesday and it’s going to be cooler as one front moves out and we’re sandwiched between storm systems. It won’t be a huge drop in temperature, but will be noticeable. A storm system will swing through from the southwest from late Wednesday through Thursday, and this one looks to provide another soaking rain to the area. Rainfall totals by the end of Thursday may reach up to 2 inches or more in some locations. Thursday’s round will be more of a heavy rain than a thunderstorm threat.

More cool air will move in behind Thursday’s system, and temperatures will be tumbling into the weekend. We’re expecting some snow on Saturday, so it’s time to get mentally prepared for a changing of the seasons. We don’t expect much, if any, accumulation out of Saturday’s dose of wintry weather, but there may be a brief, wintry accent on grassy surfaces.