Parts of West Central Michigan have been placed into a Level 1 “Marginal Risk” for thunderstorms and a Wind Advisory for strong gusts for Wednesday evening into Thursday morning. 

According to the NWS Storm Prediction Center, a storm system will be developing this afternoon near the northeast border of Kansas and Missouri. This cyclone complex is expected to push northeast into central Illinois and northeast Indiana later tonight. While it is projected to weaken as it reaches Michigan after 7:00 P.M., wind gusts as high as 40 MPH and some scattered thunderstorms are expected. Hail and small tornado development is possible in areas southwest of Kalamazoo but is highly unlikely in West Central Michigan. 

Projected time of landfall for this system, across Lake Michigan, is 7:00 p.m. Wednesday evening. Storms and rain will likely persist through the night into early Thursday morning. Believe it or not, traces of snowfall are possible after 5:00 a.m. on Thursday morning. 

The areas placed designated risk include the entire lower peninsula located south of the US-10 corridor and west of the US-24 corridor. All local counties, including Clare, Isabella, Kent, Lake, Mecosta, Montcalm, Newaygo, and Osceola are included in this outlook. Kent, Lake, Mecosta, Montcalm, Newaygo, and Osceola are included in the Wind Advisory, which will be in effect until 2:00 P.M. on Thursday, Mar. 20.

Stay tuned for weather alerts every hour on local Big Rapids Media Network stations, including NewsRadio WBRN on 1460 AM and 107.7 FM, Big Country 100.9 FM, Y-102 102.3 FM, and Rewind 99.1 FM. For more details on storm specifics, visit https://www.spc.noaa.gov/products/.