Almost every corner of the Lower 48 faces some kind of wild weather, with fires, floods, tornadoes and a punishing heat wave that all doom. A staggering 120 million Americans were hit by extreme heat alerts on Tuesday, while half a million customers in the Great Lakes and Ohio Valley were left in the dark after violent storms blew them off Monday night. Extreme weather conditions were difficult to escape on Monday. Record heat swelled from Nebraska to South Carolina. Chicago was hit by hurricane-force winds and possible tornadoes. Yellowstone National Park was closed to visitors due to flooded roads. Fires were raging in the southwestern desert. The seemingly unrelated atmospheric turbulence is all linked to what meteorologists refer to as a “ring of fire” weather pattern. A stifling heat dome is parked over the Tennessee Valley, bringing extreme heat and humidity as strong thunderstorms erupt along its northern edge. In the aftermath of the dome, dry air has dried up the southwestern landscape, creating conditions for the rapid spread of fires. A dip in the jet stream on the northwest side of the heat dome allowed exceptional amounts of moisture to spill over the Northern Rocky Mountains. The world’s largest trees are struggling to survive climate change The active weather pattern, with heat acting as a central element, is expected to remain for the next week or two. The heat, exacerbated by man-made climate change, could well fuel more catastrophic storms.
Heavy Storms Rage From Great Lakes To Ohio Valley The National Weather Service received nearly 600 reports of severe weather Monday as violent storms erupted in the Midwest and headed southeast through the Ohio Valley to southwest Virginia and western North Carolina. The storms blew winds of up to 98 miles per hour, knocking down hundreds of trees. Formed in the northern periphery of the heat dome and activated by temperature contrasts from south to north, the storms destroyed the high-altitude thunderstorms as catastrophic gusts. On Monday afternoon, thunderstorms began along Interstate 94 between Madison and Milwaukee, dropping hay the size of a chicken egg before shifting over Lake Michigan. Strong winds a few minutes ago on the west side of Fort Wayne. What sounds like a transformer exploding can be heard in the video. You’ve seen a lot of emergency vehicles go through the last 10 minutes. #INwx @NWSIWX pic.twitter.com/GunEvbNAjH – Lincoln Hauser (@Lincoln_Wx) June 14, 2022 The storm reached 70,000 feet high, feeling the effects of the jet stream high, which contributed to its strength. Lightning productive rates, with more than twelve flashes per second, accompanied the growing storm cell. Another severe thunderstorm struck west of Chicago, turning it into a superstorm or rotating storm that triggered tornado warnings across the area. Sirens sounded as hoppers danced west of the city, several of which may have fallen at intervals. Radar data was available for close traffic near Streamwood, Roselle and Maywood, Ill., And a 84 mph gust was reported at Chicago O’Hare International Airport. Some damage was reported, including the entire roof of a third-floor apartment removed in Maywood, as well as a partial wall collapse on North Fremont Street in Chicago. The Meteorological Service was at the scene on Tuesday conducting damage investigations. Further east, the storms were consolidated into multiple bow echoes or curved swirling lines containing strong winds. The most severe eruptions occurred in northeastern Indiana, extreme southern Michigan and most of Ohio. Winds were blowing at 98 miles per hour at Fort Wayne Airport in India and 75 miles per hour at Putnam, Ohio. The line was dismantled before reaching Mid-Atlantic, although isolated strong thunderstorms were possible on Tuesday afternoon. Additional strong to strong thunderstorms are possible in the Midwest and the Ohio Valley on Wednesday and Thursday – again along the northern edge of the heat dome.
Blisters in the central, eastern US The heat dome is located in the center near Nashville. It has set dozens of record high temperatures since it first formed late last week over Texas and the southwest. Temperatures reached 123 degrees in Death Valley, California, while Phoenix reached 114 and Las Vegas at 109 over the weekend. Austin and San Antonio reached 105. Widespread readings in the upper 90s to almost 100 are now shifting eastward. Stifling humidity makes these air temperatures appear 10 to 15 degrees higher. Lincoln, Neb. (with a higher temperature of 103 degrees), Columbia, SC (103), Austin (102), St. Louis (100), Charlotte (98), Nashville (97) and Louisville and Paducah, Ky. (both 97) set a record on Monday 13 June. The North Platte, Neb., Reached 108 degrees – not just a daily record, but the highest temperature ever recorded there during the month of June. The record highs could be set from Minneapolis to Charleston, SC, on Tuesday. Overheat warnings cover much of the Midwest, where stifling humidity levels, boosted by moisture from corn and other crops, could trigger heat index values above 110 degrees. “Widespread temperatures above 100 degrees Celsius are dangerous for those who work or play outdoors for long periods of time,” the National Weather Service wrote on Twitter on Tuesday. While Chicago is clearing from Monday night storms, it is experiencing “dangerous heat and humidity” on Tuesday and Wednesday, the National Weather Service said on Twitter. Windy City could feel as hot as 110 degrees. The Meteorological Service forecasts a 99-degree high in Minneapolis on Tuesday, which will claim a record, surpassing the 98 readings recorded in 1987. Nashville, Columbia, SC and St. Louis are forecast to set record highs for the second consecutive day. The heat will subside in Minnesota and Wisconsin on Wednesday, but will threaten the records from Detroit to Atlanta. A new heatwave will return to the plains by the weekend. The Climate Prediction Center of the Meteorological Service continues to forecast above-average temperatures in the center of the country until next week. Current conditions of Yellowstone North Entrance Road through Gardner Canyon between Gardiner, Montana and Mammoth Hot Springs. We will continue to communicate about this dangerous situation as more information is available. More information: pic.twitter.com/S5ysi4wf8a – Yellowstone National Park (@YellowstoneNPS) June 13, 2022 Unusually wet weather has engulfed the heat dome in the Northwest Pacific, where the jet current plunged late last week. This allowed an unusually strong humidity cloud for the time of year – known as the atmospheric river – to be thrown inland by the Pacific Ocean. Heavy rains spread in June not only to Washington and Oregon but also to the Northern Rockies. Heavy rain and melting snow combined to cause historic flooding around Yellowstone National Park. Two to three inches of rain were reported on many counters between Saturday and Monday. Rain and melting snow have in many cases caused river levels to surpass centuries-old records. Yellowstone closes after record rains destroying roads A torrential downpour swept across the northern entrance to Yellowstone National Park in Gardner Canyon, between Gardiner, Mont., And Mammoth Hot Springs. “Immediately in effect, there will be no inbound traffic at any of the five entrances to Yellowstone National Park on Tuesday, June 14th and Wednesday, June 15th at least,” the park’s website said. The park reported “extremely dangerous conditions”, including heavy flooding [and] landslides. “ At least one house was videotaped collapsing into a river in southern Montana as the ground was eroded. Meanwhile, a combination of stormy winds, low humidity and drought – intensified by recent record-breaking temperatures – has caused dangerous fire conditions in the southwest. New fires have been raging in California and Arizona since the weekend, including the northern part of Flagstaff, Arizona, where the pipeline fire has burned 5,000 acres. The Associated Press reported that the Arizona Snowbowl ski resort closed and hundreds of homes were evacuated in response to the fire, which is the second to affect the area this year. O’Leary’s 360 Overwatch Webcams tonight at 8:28 p.m. they give us an idea of how far this fire has spread … from the top to the valley below. The views we are used to will be black in the morning. That’s why we obey the burning bans! #PipelineFire #azwx pic.twitter.com/YRhcKbajpM – NWS Flagstaff (@NWSFlagstaff) June 14, 2022 In New Mexico, the state fire that has been recorded continues to rage east of Santa Fe. The Hermits Peak and Calf Canyon fire complex has charred 325,340 acres – twelve times the size of Disney World – and has been reduced by 70%. At the same time, Black Fire, the second largest in New Mexico, is also raging. President Biden (D) visited New Mexico on Saturday to meet with state and local officials and talk about ongoing firefighting efforts. Red flag warnings went into effect Tuesday in much of northern New Mexico and southwestern Colorado because of the high risk of fire.
