Severe Storm Update (Excessive Heat Watches/Warnings In Effect)

* Severe Storm Watch until 1 pm, includes Twin Cities metro.
* Potential for 1"+ hail and frequent lightning.
* Flash Flood Warnings: Alexandria area (1-4" rain has fallen, another 1-2" possible).
* Excessive Heat Watch in effect Saturday through next Wednesday for the Twin Cities.
* Excessive Heat Warning already posted for southwestern Minnesota.
* Dew point may reach 80 by Saturday afternoon.
* Heat Index: 105-115 this weekend, heatwave lingers into most of next week.

"Hail and High Water". NWS Doppler radar at 9:16 am shows a line of strong/severe storms pushing into the metro area; the line stretching into St. Cloud and Alexandria. NWS Doppler shows 1-1.5" hail in a few of the storms near St. Cloud. Storm warnings are posted for the St. Cloud area, Flash Flood Warnings near Alexandria and Glenwood, where some 1-4" rainfall amounts have already been observed - another 1-2" rain may fall. Details:

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TWIN CITIES/CHANHASSEN MN
814 AM CDT FRI JUL 15 2011

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN THE TWIN CITIES HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  DOUGLAS COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL MINNESOTA...
  SOUTHERN TODD COUNTY IN CENTRAL MINNESOTA...

* UNTIL 1100 AM CDT

* AT 812 AM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED
  THUNDERSTORMS WITH VERY HEAVY RAINFALL ACROSS THE WARNED AREA.
  BETWEEN 1 AND 4 INCHES OF RAIN HAS FALLEN SINCE 4 AM CDT... AND ANOTHER
  1 TO 2 INCHES OF RAIN IS EXPECTED THROUGH 930 AM CDT.

* RUNOFF FROM THIS EXCESSIVE RAINFALL WILL CAUSE FLASH FLOODING TO
  OCCUR. SOME LOCATIONS THAT WILL EXPERIENCE FLOODING INCLUDE...
  ALEXANDRIA...LONG PRAIRIE...BRANDON...CARLOS...CLOTHO...
  EVANSVILLE...FORADA...GARFIELD...GREY EAGLE...KENSINGTON...LITTLE
  SAUK...MILTONA...NORTH SHORE...OSAKIS AND PLEASANT BEACH.

OBSERVERS IN SOUTHWEST TODD COUNTY REPORTED RAINFALL TOTALS OF NEAR
4 INCHES WITH THESE STORMS.

Severe Storm Watch Until 1 pm. SPC has issued a storm watch for central MN (including the Twin Cities) through midday. The arrival of super-heated air will leave our atmosphere ripe for severe storms much of the day.

Everything But The Kitchen Sink. Let's see, severe storm watch until 1 pm, severe storm warnings, flash flood warnings in the Alexandria area, excessive heat watch for central/eastern MN and much of Wisconsin, excessive heat WARNING for southwestern and west central Minnesota. That's quite enough, thank you. For more details click on the NWS site.