July 4th forecast calls for fireworks amid rounds of rain

ST. LOUIS — Hot and increasingly humid conditions today, with highs jumping back into the 90s. Scattered showers and storms will spread from north to south across the region after midnight. These storms may be severe to the north west of the St. Louis region but will weaken considerably as they drop south towards I-70. I do not presently expect anything beyond sub-severe gusty winds, some lightning and scattered downpours with these storms in our area after midnight and through the morning rush hour on Wednesday.

After storms end Wednesday morning, expect much of the daylight hours to be dry, with only a few isolated storms popping up in the heat of the day. Temperatures will top off in the lower 90s on Wednesday, with uncomfortably high humidity.

Tracking the Storms Wednesday & Thursday

• Wednesday 4 a.m. to 9 a.m. – weakening storms drop southeast
• Wednesday 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. – scattered storms strongest south of st. louis
• Thursday 4 a.m. to 9 a.m. – rain and storms festival preps impacted
• Thursday 4 p.m. to 12 a.m. – strong storms possible – fireworks concerns

Another round of storms is expected late Wednesday night into Thursday morning. These storms may produce stronger wind gusts and the potential for locally heavy rain. Some flash flooding concerns may develop for a short time on Thursday morning. Rainfall totals of 1-2 inches are expected over these two days. Some spots may push 4 inches, especially in Missouri.

Similar to Wednesday, after the morning storms, much of the day will dry out, with new storms expected to develop over western Missouri late in the day and then sweep east across the St. Louis area late Thursday evening into Thursday night.

Right now, it appears these storms may hold off just long enough to get the fireworks on Thursday night. More heavy rain and stronger wind gusts are possible with these storms Thursday night as well. The weather is expected to improve Friday into the weekend.

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