Severe Storm Threat Returns to Louisiana on Thursday

The St Patrick's Day weekend across Louisiana was truly a mixed bag of the best and worst of what Mother Nature has to offer. Last Friday and again last Sunday most of Louisiana and southeastern Texas felt a barrage of heavy rains, and gusty winds, and experienced the threat of severe weather.

Fortunately, severe storms were not as widespread as first forecast but don't feel bad if you missed a big storm. You've got another chance to experience one in the next 24 to 36 hours.

National Weather Service Confirms Louisiana Severe Threat on Thursday

Just yesterday, March 19th, we welcomed the first day of Spring to Louisiana. It was a beautiful and brilliant sunny day. However, those warm and sunny conditions are about to evaporate as we move through today (Wednesday).

The official NWS Forecast from the National Weather Service Office in Lake Charles, Louisiana is calling for calm conditions again today. There will be an increase in cloud cover during the daylight hours but snippets of sunshine will also stream through.

By Thursday an approaching storm system is expected to not only ramp up the rain chances but increase the threat of strong to severe storms across the region.

The Storm Prediction Center has placed a large portion of southern Louisiana and southeastern Texas at a marginal risk for severe storms. The rest of the state will likely see storms too but the heaviest will most likely occur along and south of US 190 in Louisiana.

When Louisiana Experience Heavy Rain and Severe Storms This Week?

The most likely scenario involves showers moving in from the west during the afternoon hours on Thursday. Rain and storm chances will elevate after 2 pm on Thursday and by Thursday night much of the area could experience thunderstorms with heavy rain. Some of those storms might reach severe limits.

Forecasters believe the heaviest of the activity will clear the area early Friday morning. The NWS official forecast suggests the heavier storms should be east of Lake Charles and Lafayette by 8 am. Behind this storm system, the forecast is much nicer for the weekend.

Saturday and Sunday across Louisiana will be mostly sunny with seasonal/cool temperatures. It will be quite windy during the day on Saturday but winds should lay down by the time Sunday rolls around. The next threat of showers and storms in Louisiana will likely come early next week. As of now, there does not appear to be a major severe weather threat associated with next week's storm system.