griffinhardywx-blog
griffinhardywx-blog
Griff's Weather Blog
109 posts
Meteorologist at WJTV 12 in Jackson, Mississippi.  Posting critical weather information for the Magnolia State! #mswx
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griffinhardywx-blog · 7 years ago
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4/9/18 Monday Evening Weather Update
After a weekend of active weather in Mississippi, we're getting a break with quiet and comfortable weather right now.  Partly cloudy skies are what's on tap for tonight as well as cooler temperatures with lows in the 40s with a light North breeze.  That light breeze will stay out of the North tomorrow afternoon at around 10 mph.  A few clouds will be hanging around in the morning but we'll be sunny by the afternoon, highs near 70 degrees.  Wednesday will also feature sunny skies and near-average temperatures, highs in the 70s and lows in the upper 40s.  Thursday a warming trend begins going into the weekend, upper 70s and mostly sunny.  Friday night/Saturday morning a strong cold front passes through, giving us scattered thunderstorms.  It's too early to know how severe they will be, but as of this afternoon I do not think this will be any worse than what we saw last Friday.
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griffinhardywx-blog · 7 years ago
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4/8/18 Sunday Morning Weather Update
Very close to the freezing point early this morning in Mississippi! Temperatures in the 30s across the metro. The sunshine is here to stay this afternoon so temperatures will warm up nicely to the 60s for highs. Cloud cover will be increasing this evening and overnight temperatures will not be as cold as they are right now. Lows expected in the mid 40s. Partly cloudy for Monday with highs in the 70s. Highs stay in the low 70s through Sunday and the weather remains calm for most of the week. Thursday and Friday will be warmer with highs near 80 degrees. Our next storm chance will be along another cold front on Saturday.
As of this morning, we had 4 confirmed tornadoes touch down in our coverage area during Friday night’s severe weather outbreak… 1 EF-0 and 3 EF-1’s.  Still no word yet on the Covington County storm that likely caused a tornado.  Here is the information regarding the tornadoes below, from the National Weather Service office in Jackson:
.RANKIN COUNTY TORNADO…
Rating: EF0 Estimated Peak Wind: 75 mph Path Length /statute/: 2.75 miles Path Width /maximum/: 25 yards Fatalities: 0 Injuries: 0
Start Date: 4/6/2018 Start Time: 8:03 PM CDT Start Location: 6 WNW Pelahatchie / Rankin County / MS Start Lat/Lon: 32.3694 / -89.8975
End Date: 4/6/2018 End Time: 8:08 PM CDT End Location: 4 NW Pelahatchie / Rankin County / MS End Lat/Lon: 32.359 / -89.8538
Summary: The tornado began in a wooded area along Pelahatchie Creek, then tracked east southeastward near Haynes Chapel Road, ending near Lake Rd. A few trees were uprooted and several large branches were snapped along the path. Powerlines were downed along Haynes Chapel Rd.
.WARREN COUNTY TORNADO…
Rating: EF1 Estimated Peak Wind: 90 mph Path Length /statute/: 2.89 miles Path Width /maximum/: 75 yards Fatalities: 0 Injuries: 0
Start Date: 4/6/2018 Start Time: 8:12 PM CDT Start Location: 7 SSW Delta / Warren County / MS Start Lat/Lon: 32.2203 / -90.9637
End Date: 4/6/2018 End Time: 8:22 PM CDT End Location: 7 S Delta / Warren County / MS End Lat/Lon: 32.2216 / -90.9155
Summary: This tornado began just west of the Mississippi River over a heavily wooded area before moving over Glass Road where numerous large branches and a few small trees were snapped. The tornado reached peak intensity right as it crossed Hwy 61 where multiple hardwood trees were snapped. The tornado dissipated over a wooded area just east of Hwy 61.
.SOUTHEAST CLAIBORNE COUNTY TORNADO…
Rating: EF1 Estimated Peak Wind: 110 mph Path Length /statute/: 6.15 miles Path Width /maximum/: -880 yards Fatalities: 0 Injuries: 0
Start Date: 4/6/2018 Start Time: 9:32 PM CDT Start Location: 12 SE Port Gibson / Claiborne County / MS Start Lat/Lon: 31.8392 / -90.8241
End Date: 4/6/2018 End Time: 9:39 PM CDT End Location: 16 ESE Port Gibson / Claiborne County /MS End Lat/Lon: 31.846 / -90.7252
Summary: The tornado touched down after crossing the to the northwest creek basin and moved more east-northeast, beginning on Moss Down Lane. It continued along around a 3-4 mile portion of Highway 547. This tornado began to widen and caused widespread tree damage all along the path, especially along Highway 547. Hundreds of trees were snapped and uprooted and many powerlines were broken or snapped near Mt. Pleasant Road, Coleman Road and Northeast Smith Road. In addition, some homes had trees fall on them or had tin peeled back off the roof. One 18 wheeler tractor trailer was overturned as well. The tornado was the widest at this point along Highway 547 and damage reached high end EF1 levels. It continued past NE Smith Road into another creek basin, causing more widespread tree damage. It continued to Henneberry Road before lifting.
.BARLOW/SOUTHWEST COPIAH COUNTY TORNADO…
Rating: EF1 Estimated Peak Wind: 100 mph Path Length /statute/: 2.37 miles Path Width /maximum/: 700 yards Fatalities: 0 Injuries: 0
Start Date: 4/6/2018 Start Time: 9:46 PM CDT Start Location: 17 WSW Hazlehurst / Copiah County / MS Start Lat/Lon: 31.8262 / -90.7006
End Date: 4/6/2018 End Time: 9:49 PM CDT End Location: 16 WSW Hazlehurst / Copiah County / MS End Lat/Lon: 31.8129 / -90.6633
Summary: The tornado touched down along just west of Barlow Road. It continued near the intersection of Barlow and Henneberry Road before crossing Hawkins Road. Many large limbs and trees were snapped and uprooted along the path. It continued east-southeast before crossing Hawkins Road. Here soon after crossing into another creek basin, the tornado weakened and lifted.
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griffinhardywx-blog · 7 years ago
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4/7/18 Sunday Morning Weather Update
The cold front that brought severe weather last night has now made its way out of Mississippi and into the Gulf of Mexico.  Temperatures have dropped rapidly in the front's wake and will continue to do so through the day today.  Skies will remain cloudy this afternoon and temperatures will peak in the low 50s.  A few post-frontal light showers are possible too, that chance is at 30%.  A freeze warning is in effect for a few counties North of Jackson.  Lows by Sunday morning will be close to the freezing point in the mid 30s.  The sunshine will come back out by Sunday afternoon and temperatures will be a tad warmer, although still cool for April, in the low to mid 60s for highs.
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griffinhardywx-blog · 7 years ago
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The threat level for severe weather in Mississippi tomorrow night has rapidly increased.  I have a full discussion on what to expect and when here.
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griffinhardywx-blog · 7 years ago
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The cold front that gave us storms last night is now out of our way and moving towards the Atlantic Coast.  Had quite a lot of storm reports with this system as it moved through the Mississippi and Ohio River Valley…274 reports of wind damage across the US!  It’s cooler in the front’s wake, only in the 60s this afternoon in the Jackson metro.
Temperatures will really start to drop tonight as high pressure settles over the region.  Forecast lows will dip to the upper 30s tonight in Mississippi!  Tomorrow afternoon will be another beautiful spring day with temperatures in the 70s with plenty of sunshine.
Our next storm chance will come late on Friday to start the weekend.  As a warm front lifts from the Southwest, light showers may come and go during the day Friday, but the bulk of the rain we’re expecting will come late Friday night and early Saturday morning.  With this next system, there is a low-end chance of these storms turning severe, but severe weather parameters are not very impressive at this time.
Rainfall totals also look marginal as this system will also pass through quickly…a lot like what we saw with last night’s front.  Totals increase the farther North you go (0.5″ of rain near the Jackson metro, up to 1.5″ near the Memphis metro).
I think this next system will be out of our way by lunchtime Saturday.  Skies should be clearing out behind the front and temperatures will remain cool once again.  Sunshine should stick with us for Sunday as well.
The next week will more than likely feature near-average or just above-average temperatures in Mississippi…forecast guidance do not have highs getting above 80º until next Friday.
Winter is not ready to quit just yet!  That’s all I’ve got for now.  As always I’ll be watching our next system for severe potential.  Have a great day!
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griffinhardywx-blog · 7 years ago
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4/4/18 Wednesday Afternoon Weather Update
The cold front that gave us strong storms last night has now pushed East towards the Atlantic Coast.  Now, a cool surface high is settling over the South giving us clear skies and a light North breeze.  Clear skies will continue overnight and temperatures will keep dropping all the way to the upper 30s & low 40s by tomorrow morning!  Tomorrow afternoon will be perfect with sunshine and comfortable temps in the 60s & 70s.  Friday will give us another chance of rain during the day with more storms likely Friday night and early Saturday morning.  There's a low-end chance of them turning severe once more.  Stay tuned for more forecast updates as our next chance of storms draws closer! #mswx
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griffinhardywx-blog · 7 years ago
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Severe weather likely across Mississippi Tuesday night
We are now in April: the month where Mississippi on average sees the most tornadoes.  As is typical of this time of year, we've got a slight chance of seeing a few weak tornadoes Tuesday night.
A strong cold front will be sweeping through Mississippi late on Tuesday night, giving us another possibility of severe weather in our area. The main surface low with this system will be centered near the Great Lakes region, meaning that it will be far enough to the North that atmospheric dynamics in our area will not be entirely sufficient for truly substantial severe weather.
That being said, this event will more than likely be very similar to the severe weather we saw this past Wednesday night in the Jackson metro area, which brought 3 brief tornado touchdowns (EF-0 in Rankin County, EF-1 in Attala County, EF-1 in Choctaw County) and many other reports of wind damage.
This system will begin to pass through our area during the evening commute on Tuesday. The rain should be exiting our state by Wednesday morning.  Storm timing will favor stronger storms across the Mississippi River Tuesday afternoon, where daytime heating will be working to the storms' advantage.  Because this will be an overnight event, the line of storms should be weakening as they march East through Mississippi due to the absence of daytime heating.
Brief damaging wind gusts, small hail, and brief SPIN-UP tornadoes are all possible with this event.  This will NOT be an outbreak of supercells, but rather an intense squall line of storms.
Have a way to receive weather information in the event of a warning being issued near you!  Nighttime outbreaks are always tricky because most of us are asleep, but making sure your NOAA weather radios are charged and ready is an easy way to wake yourself up.  Should the power go out, make sure your devices are also charged so that you can tune into our coverage with the WJTV app from your severe weather safe spot.
Fortunately I don't see this being a night where you'll need to be up all night long, but you will more than likely be rudely awoken when the storms are passing through.  Stay safe, folks!
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griffinhardywx-blog · 7 years ago
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4/1/18 Sunday Morning Weather Update
Beautiful Easter Sunday!  Thunderstorms are on the way Tuesday night/Wednesday morning.  Small chance of them turning severe.
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griffinhardywx-blog · 7 years ago
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3/31/18 Saturday Afternoon Weather Update
It's quiet and chilly outside early this Saturday morning.  We are waking up to temperatures in the 40s in our area.  This afternoon will be sunny and mild for this time of year with highs in the 70s and a light South breeze.  Tonight will be mostly clear with lows in the upper 40s.  Easter Sunday will also be mainly quiet and comfortable with mostly sunny skies and highs in the upper 70s.  Monday highs will reach the 80s and rain chances begin to build starting Tuesday evening as another cold front passes through the region.  This chance of rain lasts overnight into Wednesday.  Another chance of rain comes into the forecast on Friday of next week at 60%.
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griffinhardywx-blog · 7 years ago
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3/28/18 Severe Weather Highlights
3/28/18 Severe Weather Highlights
https://videopress.com/embed/sL3AcwJj?hd=0&autoPlay=0&permalink=0&loop=0 Here is a compilation of the footage we shot during yesterday’s severe weather outbreak across South-Central Mississippi. This was the first time this year we’ve gotten to seriously make use of our Mobile Weather Lab at WJTV!
We started yesterday’s chase at roughly 5:15 PM, about 2 hours after the tornado watch was issued…
View On WordPress
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griffinhardywx-blog · 7 years ago
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March 28th 2018 Severe Weather Highlights
Here is a compilation of the footage we shot during yesterday’s severe weather outbreak across South-Central Mississippi. This was the first time this year we’ve gotten to seriously make use of our Mobile Weather Lab at WJTV!
We started yesterday’s chase at roughly 5:15 PM, about 2 hours after the tornado watch was issued by the National Weather Service. Our photographer Drew & I started by driving due West to Vicksburg to get a live shot of the storms as they crossed the Mississippi River. To our surprise, right upon arriving at the bridge, the first tornado warning of the evening was issued for our coverage area.
The possible tornado was to our North moving through Issaquena County, so we quickly doubled back to head up US Highway 61 towards Rolling Fork for a quick intercept as the storm tracked Northeast.
We were surprised when a suspicious-looking lowering of the clouds snuck up behind us! That’s where the highlight video begins. This lowering did not form into a tornado, but it definitely caught us by surprise. This would be where a tornado would form in this scenario…on the leading edge. By that point, we were traveling North on Highway 3, the state highway where the hills meet the flatland of the Mississippi Delta–a GREAT spot for storm viewing because of storms generally coming from the West and a lack of trees obscuring visibility.
After this storm quickly moved away from us to the Northeast through Yazoo County towards Holmes County, it became out of range for us to follow. A new storm began forming to our South, so we turned around to head back towards Vicksburg. Where US-61 & Hwy. 3 come together is where we sat and waited for the storm to roll over right on top of us. That’s where in the video we parked on the side of the Highway.
Looking out the window looked like the dry cycle of the carwash! Could barely see 200 feet in front of us.
We had a break in Vicksburg for about an hour before another tornado warning was issued for Madison County, followed by Hinds & Rankin Counties. On radar, there was a possible quick spin-up tornado headed for downtown Jackson. We crossed through the backside of this slow-moving squall line by going East down I-20, hopefully catching up with the storm’s leading edge, where the tornado would be. At 9 PM, we had made it to the I-55/20 intersection on the South side of town when the circulation was crossing into Rankin County. This is when we cut to us in the storm truck just before we crossed the Pearl River into Rankin County.
By then, the circulation was just NW of Flowood and quickly outrunning us. We decided to head North towards Lakeland Drive to sit and wait for the storm to pass so we could then go and assess the damage. We got a call from a viewer in Flowood who said he sustained damage from this storm. This is the gentleman we interviewed at the end of the video.
When it was all said and done, this looks more than likely like a straight-lined wind event rather than a tornado that hit the Jackson metro. The damage reports from this storm were scattered over a large area…not something you would expect from a tornado that strikes a localized area.
Quite an exciting day! Luckily we have not had any reports of injuries from these storms.
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griffinhardywx-blog · 7 years ago
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DEN -> MSY A few timelapses from my flight from Denver to New Orleans that I threw together in Adobe Premiere.
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griffinhardywx-blog · 7 years ago
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3/27/18 Tuesday Afternoon Weather Update
Heavy rain & storms on the way tomorrow night and into Thursday morning.  Localized flash flooding will be the main potential problem.  Other modes of severe weather are also possible tomorrow night. #mswx
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griffinhardywx-blog · 7 years ago
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3/25/18 Sunday Morning Weather Update
Warm, humid and cloudy this morning across our viewing area.  I'm expecting this overall trend to continue for the rest of the day with a 30% chance of light rain.  Highs today will be in the mid to upper 70s in the metro, 80s farther South in the Pine Belt.  Mostly cloudy skies will prevail overnight into Monday, lows in the lower 60s.  More clouds will remain overhead until Tuesday where we will have low-end chances of rain as well.  Highs remaining in the upper 70s.  Wednesday and Thursday is when heavy rain and thunderstorms are likely across our area.  2 to 3 inches of rain in total is also likely.  Some of those could turn severe.  Sunshine will not return to the area until Friday after a slow-moving front finally passes through.
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griffinhardywx-blog · 7 years ago
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3/24/18 Saturday Morning Weather Update
Currently looking at partly cloudy skies across our area this morning.  Current temperatures are in the 60s.  This afternoon will be warm and breezy with highs in the 80s and winds out of the South at 15 to 20 mph.  Tonight a few isolated showers are expected, especially North of I-20.  These showers will continue to move South as tomorrow morning goes on.  Otherwise we will be cloudy and in the upper 70s for Sunday afternoon.  Mostly cloudy skies prevail through Tuesday with above average temperatures for March.  Scattered thunderstorms and heavy rain are expected Wednesday & Thursday of this coming week.  Friday afternoon will be cooler as sunshine returns to the area.
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griffinhardywx-blog · 7 years ago
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DEN to MSY
A few timelapses from my flight from Denver to New Orleans.  Flew over Oklahoma City, Baton Rouge & down the Mississippi River.
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griffinhardywx-blog · 7 years ago
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3/22/18 Thursday Afternoon Weather Update
Thursday afternoon weather update...
Warmer temperatures expected for most of the forecast period.  Upper 70s to low 80s during the afternoon.  Cloud cover will be thicker this weekend with a small chance of light showers Saturday & Sunday.  This trend of warmer weather will continue into next week with a good chance of heavy rain by Wednesday and next Thursday. #mswx
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