Severe weather could hamper the journey home after the holidays for millions of U.S. travelers this week and weekend.
As Pacific storms continue to slam the West Coast, severe thunderstorms are forecast Thursday across the South, potentially snarling plans for the nearly 120 million people who were expected to travel over the year-end holidays, according to the nonprofit AAA.
Dozens of delays and cancelations were already reported at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport in Texas on Thursday morning. Airports in Austin, Atlanta, and Los Angeles were also affected, according to the tracker FlightAware.
Heavy rain and mountain snow will move over the Pacific Northwest through the end of the week, as the latest atmospheric river event — a plume of moisture in the sky — brings moderate-to-heavy rain and thunderstorms to the region.
“Across the Northwest, there will be wet and snowy roads to contend with, depending on your elevation, that will result in difficult travel from Christmas night right through the end of the week as storms pummel the region,” AccuWeather Meteorologist Brandon Buckingham said.
Some areas could see as many as 3 inches of rainfall, bringing flooding in areas with the highest precipitation.
While the storm system shifts inland, there will be a short break before the next round arrives Thursday night, with an additional 1 to 2 inches of rain by Friday morning.
Forecasters have also warned about potentially damaging winds near the coast.
As much as three feet of snow will fall in the Cascades and Olympic Mountains. Winter storm warnings are in effect there, with northern California seeing some advisories and lighter snow.
The northern Rockies and Intermountain West will also get “noteworthy” snow.
While relatively mild conditions are forecast across the majority of the country through Friday, heavy rain and strong thunderstorms are expected to return from eastern Texas to Louisiana on Thursday.
“Both wind shear and instability parameters appear to become increasingly favorable for some severe weather on Thursday, and therefore the Storm Prediction Center has portions of the ArkLaTex region in a Slight Risk for severe storms,” the National Weather Service cautioned.
Large hail and tornadoes could be possible, according to FOX Weather, with rain expanding during the busiest travel days of the post-holiday period.
Heavy rainfall will bring a slight risk of flash flooding from eastern Texas to central Arkansas. Heavy rain is also likely across portions of the Mid-South going into Friday, as the storm system slowly tracks eastward.
