In the not-so-distant past, the National Weather Service would issue "High Risk Storm Day" warnings on several days through the spring and summer months. On such days, the atmosphere is primed for severe weather (tornados, large hail, torrential rain, destructive winds, flooding), triggered by powerful storm systems as they move eastward across the country. Today is the second warning already issued this year.
Now centered over the upper Midwest, today's storm is relatively slow moving and its trailing cold front is expected to unleash both severe weather and extensive flooding from Arkansas east-northeastward through the Ohio River Valley. North of the central low, snow will fall from the Northern Plains to the Upper Great Lakes.
As we approach the historic peak of the severe weather season in the American Heartland, it is clear that climate change is augmenting the effect of these storms (not to mention the intensity of hurricanes to our southeast). Benign storm fronts have been relegated to our past and high risk storm days have become the norm.