6 hours ago
2
You have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load.
Much of Oklahoma is at high risk for tornadoes on Monday, but forecasters warned the region could see additional hazards including very large hail, severe winds and flash flooding.
Forecast risk of tornadoes for Monday
May 19, 2025, 11:29 a.m. ET
The Plains, South and Midwest are expecting another round of severe weather this week, with forecasters warning of thunderstorms capable of producing large hail, damaging winds and “potentially strong to intense” tornadoes. Flash flooding is also expected for several areas.
Warm, humid air from the Gulf of Mexico is spreading northward into the central United States, while cooler, drier air is moving in from the west. This clash of air masses, combined with strong winds higher up in the atmosphere, is creating a very unstable environment — perfect for severe thunderstorms to form.
“The combination of these today are rather strong,” Bryan Smith, a lead forecaster at the Storm Prediction Center, said on Monday. “So with that, we’re expecting severe thunderstorms that develop later today and will rapidly acquire what we refer to as supercell thunderstorm characteristics.”
Supercells are a type of thunderstorm that can produce the most severe weather, including damaging wind gusts, very large hail and sometimes tornadoes, according to the National Weather Service. If the conditions in the atmosphere are right, supercell thunderstorms can last for several hours.
Central and eastern Oklahoma, the far northwest of Arkansas, southwestern Missouri, southeastern Kansas and the far north of Texas are at the highest risk on Monday, a Level 4 out of 5 risk for severe weather, according to the Storm Prediction Center.
Some of the thunderstorms may also merge into larger clusters as they move east, producing an additional hazard of straight-line winds, a strong wind that does not rotate like a tornado does.
