Lafayette County under enhanced risk for severe weather Tuesday

Published 9:00 am Tuesday, April 3, 2018

A cold front coming into the south is expected to bring high winds to Oxford and Lafayette County today and a possibility of some severe thunderstorms that could produce tornadoes.

The chance for the most severe weather will be between 6 and 9 p.m.

Lafayette County is currently under a wind advisory.

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According to the National Weather Service of Memphis, south winds of 15 to 30 mph with higher gusts will be common across the area. Gusty winds are expected with the passage of the cold front as well. Strong northwest winds will continue for a couple of hours after the front moves through.

Light, unsecured outdoor items will be vulnerable to the wind. In addition, travelers on east-to-west roadways will find driving challenging at times, especially high profile vehicles.

As of this morning, the NWS all of Lafayette County inside the enhanced risk of severe weather area; however, those risk areas could change throughout the day as the storm line progresses into the northwest Mississippi.

Lafayette County Emergency Management Coordinator Steve Quarles said the high winds could cause some trees to topple.

“Last week, we had several large trees in the county that fell due to saturated soils,” he said this morning. “This this will be an issue tonight. Our citizens need to stay weather alert, and realize the potential for trees to fall that have weathered past storms due to the saturated soils.”

There is the lesser threat but still potential for hail and some tornadoes, Quarles said.

Weather experts suggest keeping cell phones charged and weather radios in areas where warning alarms can be heard throughout the house.

Flooding is not expected to be an issue associated with these storms. Currently, the projected rainfall for Oxford and Lafayette County is 1 to 2 inches.

The incoming cold front is expected to drop the temperature drastically, from a high of 79 during the day Tuesday to a low of 40 degrees that night.

The high for Wednesday is expected to be 58 degrees in Oxford with a low that night of 33 degrees. Frost is expected to form overnight and into Thursday morning. Temperatures for the rest of the week should be about 60-65 during the day and in the high 30s to low 41s through the weekend before starting to warm back up Sunday.

After clear and sunny skies on Wednesday and Thursday, more rain is expected for the area on Thursday through Monday.