First Alert Weather: The last day of winter may include some thunderstorms

ROCHESTER N.Y. (WHEC) – Our little stretch of mild and sunny weather is ending. A storm system in the central US will track east over the Great Lakes on Saturday, bringing several rounds of rain and even some thunderstorms.

The specifics: Showers will evolve into a wave of steadier rain after midnight tonight, with some rumbles of thunder overnight. This should exit the area by Saturday morning, leaving us with a mostly cloudy and mostly dry start to the day. We’ll be in the warm sector of the storm system, meaning temperatures will rise well into the 60s by lunchtime and early afternoon. If we get some breaks of sun, that’ll help to add some more instability to the atmosphere. A cluster of scattered thunderstorms is expected to develop between noon and 6 p.m. from the Genesee Valley east into central New York. There’s the slight chance a storm or two could produce gusty winds and small hail, in addition to lightning.

While our severe threat is low, it isn’t zero. The best chance of seeing a strong to severe storm should be in the central Finger Lakes east of Rochester, toward Syracuse and into Pennsylvania. If the placement of the stronger storms moves a little further west and closer to Rochester, a Yellow Alert may be needed. For now, just be aware that some storms are in the forecast Saturday afternoon.

We’ll welcome in Spring Sunday morning with a few lingering rain or wet snow showers, and cooler air. So, Sunday will be the quieter and drier day, but it’ll also be much cooler with highs in the 40s and a brisk wind. We’ll enjoy a few quiet days with dry weather, some sun and seasonable temperatures in the upper 40s and lower 50s early next week before our next storm system will likely bring another round of rain by Wednesday and Thursday.

The First Alert Weather Team will keep you updated on the storm threat Saturday with frequent updates on-air, online and on your favorite social media platform. Meteorologist Alex Bielfeld will have updates starting at 6 a.m. Saturday on News10NBC Today.

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