Morning Express with Robin Meade

What the hail? Huge, baseball-sized hail. That’s the video I have to share with you from Omaha NE yesterday as the MW and Plains got hammered with the late-summer storms. There is more of that action shotgunned around the US this morning, mainly across the Eastern half of the nation. I’ll show you the regional radars on the show, but there are all kinds of impulses shooting around the atmosphere right now. Each one will generate some storm action below it this afternoon, I’ll have it for you.

The heat is back in the same spots from TX to KS over to AR, LA, and MS. The heat index will rise to around 110F today.

Record highs from the 1800s were broken yesterday in LA and TX, and like Kate Gosselin’s personal assistant, you’ll get no break today. The high pressure region is growing a little bigger and stretching West and North to include more regions under heat advisories. Temperatures will be over 100F in the same spots, and the humidity will jack that heat index to around 110F. I’ll show you the areas, but it now includes spots in KS too. Heck even Denver hits 98 today.

Storms are producing heavy rain in the Philly area this morning, and that will blossom into NYC today as well. Round one will end for them later this morning, but round two will develop later this afternoon. The end result will be heavy rain over already drenched spots in the NE and air travel delays in the NYC/Philly area. I’ll have the updates on the show.

The thunder in AR is making it louder than a kindergarten class on Double Mocha Cappuccino Day. Oh yeah, welcome back to school for some of you!

Storms are plowing through the Plains and into the Midwest this morning, and will continue into the afternoon. Watch out KS, AR, OK, MO, and NE for gusty winds and large hail. I’ll have the latest radar on the show. The rain should total 2-3” in the most persistent storms through the morning, so some local flash flooding is a possible, too.

So sales for the morning-after pill tripled in an English county the night of the royal wedding. Something was in the air that night... probably feet! What’s this have to do with weather, you ask? Nothing.

Let's get on topic. The slow-moving storm over the Great Lakes is trailing a cold front to the south right now, and it's tapping into some Gulf moisture and producing heavy rain along that coastline. Pockets of rain and storms are also sailing through the East coast and then arcing back to the Great Lakes now. Some heavy rain is hitting the ATL area now, so some delays will probably affect travelers right off the bat today. Storms will be ongoing in the NYC and Philly areas, so expect delays up there as well. Severe storms packing damaging wind and large hail will roll across the MW and NE, and then back to the Central Plains this afternoon.The heavy rain potential in the Hudson Valley has prompted flood watches up there, and the foul weather will edge to New England this afternoon too. Check out the 24-hour rainfall projection.

Summer starts at 1:16 pm EDT today, but don’t tell that to most of the people living in the South. We’ve been sweatin’ like Tracey Morgan in Nashville, just puddlin’ up for a month now! The heat is back for the Low Country of SC and GA, too, and an excessive heat watch is up for tomorrow in the Phoenix area, where temperatures will reach about 115 degrees.

The Plains really got hammered yesterday with tornado-making storms, and that unseasonably strong storm is wrapping up into the upper MW this morning. The energy won’t be quit as potent, but the storms are firing now over the MW and S. I’ll show you the active radar on the show. The storms this afternoon will take up a lot of real estate, from the S to the MW and NE. Check out the map.

Summer starts at 1:16 pm EDT today, but don’t tell that to most of the people living in the South. We’ve been sweatin’ like Tracey Morgan in Nashville, just puddlin’ up for a month now! The heat is back for the Low Country of SC and GA, too, and an excessive heat watch is up for tomorrow in the Phoenix area, where temperatures will reach about 115 degrees.

The Plains really got hammered yesterday with tornado-making storms, and that unseasonably strong storm is wrapping up into the upper MW this morning. The energy won’t be quit as potent, but the storms are firing now over the MW and S. I’ll show you the active radar on the show. The storms this afternoon will take up a lot of real estate, from the S to the MW and NE. Check out the map.

“Zzzt..zzzzt…poof!” That’s the sound my TV made last night as I settled in with my drinks and chips to watch game seven of the NHL Stanley Cup Finals.

I thought I was hallucinating, or that my son had just pulled a fast one. But turns out I – along with about 100,000 other GA residents - lost power in the bruising storms that crushed the Mid South and SE last night. That complex is moving off the Low Country coast right now and headed through North FL, with more to come later today.

Morning storms are packing some heavy rain and frequent lightning in IL and MO, which should hold together as they edge through WI, MI, IN, OH, KY and TN. I think sunshine along with the heat will let these storms grow and even crash down into northern MS, AL and GA. Damaging wind gusts and large hail will be the big threat for the day, and I’ll keep you updated on the progress of these throughout the morning. The heavy rain is causing more flash flooding in MO and IL this morning – I’ll show you the warnings.

That old upper low from the weekend is moving away from the NE, but the cool air is still in New England along with clouds and a few afternoon storms. NYC gets the full shot of warm air, with a high near 84.

There are a few storms firing in the Upper MW this morning, but other than that the radar is as empty as LeBron’s trophy case (that one’s for you, Ohio!). An upper level trough is over the NW part of the country, and some energy ejecting out is producing the stuff this morning that will continue and intensify through the afternoon. There’s a slight chance of severe storms this afternoon over the MW, with the main threat being damaging winds and large hail. With an additional wind shear near the NE this afternoon, some of those storms may start to spin, causing a brief tornado too.

The NE is about 20-25 degrees colder than last week, with a pocket of cooler air over New England. Low clouds, drizzle, and rain is expected over the NE today allowing those temps. to remain cool. Travel delays in Boston and NYC are possible with the poor visibility today; I’ll have the updates.