Another Active Day on the Way

Good morning! I am getting my girls ready for school....they are not too hungry for once. I think it is a TRIX morning. The question is what tricks does nature have up its sleeve? No surprises this morning. The line of showers and storms that was in the forecast is rolling through. I am not expecting severe weather and most importantly no training of thunderstorms. The heaviest rain should be out of our area by 9 a.m. which is even better news. Rain amounts overnight was mainly less than a quarter-inch in most areas. We could see a quick half-inch in some areas early this mornng with our next round of rain.

The next round of storms will move through between 7 p.m. and 11 p.m. We could see an additional half-inch to three-quarters of an inch of rain. The good news is that we should stay below the critical two inches of rain in most areas which will prevent major flooding on the Wabash and Tippecanoe River. We still have to watch for the worst flooding since February of 2008 in parts of the area and residents along the Tippecanoe and Wabash Rivers will have to be ready to move if necessary. Let's just keep those rain amounts on the lower side!

We are still in a slight risk for severe weather and the atmosphere should be most unstable in our area right around 9 p.m. The lifted index and CAPE values are much lower than they were on Sunday afternoon. The lower these values the lower our chances of damaging storms. But I have done this long enough to know that we will all need to monitor this carefully and I will have updates through the day. As of now our main threats tonight will be wind gusts of 40 to 50 mph and small hail. But again this could still change. Just be ready and have a PLAN B. I am going to get my girls to school and will be back with you a little later. Have a great day!

New look & New place for the blog--Click below for updates

Hey blog fans. We're moving to a new blog platform.

It's not updated in WLFI.com's navigation yet (it will be tomorrow!) but click on the link below for a sneak peek at our new look and updates about the flooding.

http://blogs.wlfi.com/category/mike-prangleys-lafayette-weather-blog/

Tornado Confirmed near West Bedford & More Storms are on the Way

The National Weather Service in Indianapolis has confirmed an EF-3 tornado with wind speeds near 160 mph. A school bus was thrown 75 feet and one house was totally destroyed with just its foundation left. Here in the Lafayette area we had near hurricane force winds rip through the area with lots of damage and debris reported across the area. I will post some pictures here of the damage this evening and talk more about a second round of severe weather on the way. Our next chance of storms will arrive after 3 a.m. Tuesday but I think the best chance of severe weather will once again be late Tuesday and Tuesday night. Damaging wind, large hail, and a few tornadoes will be possible. We are also monitoring the Wabash River and the Tippecanoe River for more flooding on the way. Be ready to move in those normally flood-prone areas. Join me tonight to find out how much rain is on the way.

4 Feet of Water in Some Yards at Horseshoe Bend

Well the Norway and Oakdale Dam water levels are starting to steady off after a rapid rise between 5:30 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. but they have a very high flow between 16,000 and 17,000 cfs. It is enough to close a couple roads in Carroll County at 2000 and 2500 W. Some folks have reported up to 4 feet of water in their yards at Horseshoe Bend but no evacuations have been ordered since most roads still remain clear of water. I spoke with White and Carroll County Emergency Management and they have made it clear that all residents in those normally flood-prone areas on the Tippecanoe River need to be ready to move if evacuations are ordered. If the flow reaches up to 22,000 cfs then the flooding would be bad enough for this to happen. Levels are not expected to reach that high but residents need to monitor the situation closely over the next few hours. The good news is NO MORE STORMS ARE EXPECTED TONIGHT....but Tuesday could be a different story.

High wind gusts are also causing problems with power lines being knocked down. The ground is soft and saturated due to 2 to 3 inches of rain and those wind gusts of 40 to 55 mph are easily causing big problems. The wind should start easing up by 9 p.m. across the area. I will check back if anything should change tonight. Thanks for all your helpful e-mails and pictures. I will post all those incredible pictures as soon as I can. What a day it has been and I appreciate all your help as always. It was a team effort and we proudly were the only station that warned you of those hurricane force winds that swept through the area. I am glad everybody is safe and sound from where you live! :)

Car Rooftops Ripped off & Trees Down Across the Area

WEATHER TEAM 18 UPDATE: A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR CASS AND MIAMI COUNTIES UNTIL 5 P.M. A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR CARROLL AND CLINTON COUNTIES UNTIL 4:30 P.M. THE MAIN THREAT WILL BE DAMAGING WIND GUSTS NEAR 60 MPH. WE STILL CANNOT RULE OUT A BRIEF, ISOLATED TORNADO AS WE ARE STILL UNDER A TORNADO WATCH. BUT AT THIS TIME LIVE DOPPLER 18 IS STILL SHOWING THE MAIN THREATS BEING DAMAGING WIND GUSTS AND HEAVY DOWNPOURS. A TORNADO WARNING CONTINUE FOR FULTON COUNTY UNTIL 4:45 P.M. BUT THE WORST OF THAT STORM IS NOW QUICKLY LIFTING INTO MARSHALL COUNTY.

I am still gathering information and will let you know more about those storm reports tonight at 6 p.m. including the car rooftop that hopped a six foot fence off of 450 South.....I have NEVER had a storm report like this one!

There was also a large tree blocking portions of Divison Road...

Developing....

Line Continues to Race Eastward with Wind & Heavy Rain

WEATHER TEAM 18 UPDATE: A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR CASS AND MIAMI COUNTIES UNTIL 5 P.M. A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR CARROLL AND CLINTON COUNTIES UNTIL 4:30 P.M. THE MAIN THREAT WILL BE DAMAGING WIND GUSTS NEAR 60 MPH. WE STILL CANNOT RULE OUT A BRIEF, ISOLATED TORNADO AS WE ARE STILL UNDER A TORNADO WATCH. BUT AT THIS TIME LIVE DOPPLER 18 IS STILL SHOWING THE MAIN THREATS BEING DAMAGING WIND GUSTS AND HEAVY DOWNPOURS. A TORNADO WARNING CONTINUE FOR FULTON COUNTY UNTIL 4:45 P.M. BUT THE WORST OF THAT STORM IS NOW QUICKLY LIFTING INTO MARSHALL COUNTY.

Tornado Warning Due to Rotation in Extreme Northern Netwon and Jasper Counties

WEATHER TEAM 18 UPDATE: A TORNADO WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR EXTREME NORTHERN NEWTON AND JASPER COUNTIES DUE TO A ROTATING THUNDERSTORM THAT COULD REACH THE GROUND AS A TORNADO. THIS ROTATING STORM WILL BE NEAR LAKE VILLAGE BY 3:20 P.M.

A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR BENTON, NEWTON, AND JASPER COUNTIES UNTIL 3:45 P.M. THE MAIN THREAT WILL BE DAMAGING WIND GUSTS AND LARGE HAIL. THE WORST PART OF THIS STORM WILL BE NEAR FOWLER BY 3:05 P.M. A TORNADO WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR OUR ENTIRE VIEWING AREA UNTIL 5 P.M.