Afternoon storms were prequel to severe weekend weather in metro Atlanta

The region got a small sample of what’s to come this weekend as Thursday shifted from a dry start to a stormy afternoon.

“Take the umbrella with you if you’re going to be out late afternoon and early evening, because that’s when we’re going to see showers and storms flaring up,” Channel 2 Action News meteorologist Eboni Deon said earlier on Thursday.

Most of Thursday’s stormy conditions should have stayed to the south and west of the city, where areas along the Alabama border were under a Level 1 of 5 risk for severe weather. But rain reached some parts of the metro area and North Georgia.

Things will dry out overnight and clouds will linger Friday, though a sliver of northwest Georgia will be under a Level 1 of 5 severe storm risk.

The most turbulent conditions will arrive Saturday afternoon, meteorologists warn.

Hail, blustering winds and an increased risk for tornadoes are expected as a line of strong storms roars into the region from the west that afternoon.

“Please start making and communicating your severe weather plans now,” the Weather Service warns. “Know where your safe place is, ensure your weather radio is in working order, and consider your plans if they involve being outdoors.”

The agency added: “With much of the action taking place overnight (Saturday evening into Sunday morning) it is vital that you remain weather aware,” it said. “Be prepared, not scared!”

According to the Weather Service, it is “increasingly beginning to look as though a significant outbreak of supercells may take place” to the west of the region. How long that threat lasts will depend on how far east those storms hold together, as they can “remain potent well after sundown given the right environment.”

Twisters can spin up any time of year but are most likely to occur between March and May with a peak in April, according to the NWS. And late night tornadoes have been a trend in the past few years.

Four years ago in Newnan, for example, an EF4 tornado struck at 11:30 p.m. and left one person dead. The year before, an EF2 tore through far North Georgia and Tennessee, killing at least 10.

Forecasters are still narrowing down the storm’s timing, but the best estimate for severe weather to reach metro Atlanta is Saturday afternoon, NWS meteorologist Brett Albright said. Some rain may be possible that morning.

“I will say it looks like a better potential than anything we’ve seen so far this year,” Albright said of the tornado risk. “That being said, in terms of trying to pin it down in any sort of location or time, it’s just hard right now.”