Monday Afternoon Update: As Expected, Getting Stormy In Vermont

The wind is rising and the sky is darkening in Vermont as that strong cold front we told you would bring lots of wind and rain is bringing, well, lots of wind and rain.

Gusty winds tossing trees under darkening
skies in St. Albans, Vermont as of 2 p.m.  

As of 2 p.m. the main band of rain was across central New York, trudging east.

There's actually a tornado watch in eastern New York, right up to the Vermont border from Rutland County south. A watch means there is the possibility of a twister.

There's even a tornado warning, indicating radar has shown there is rotation and a possible tornado, west of Albany, New York as of 2 p.m.

I don't think there will be many tornadoes, because the weather system doesn't seem to have exactly the right ingredients for twisters. But I wouldn't be surprised if there are one or two brief tornadoes in the Hudson Valley of New York this afternoon.

The main story is the straight line winds. Out ahead of the cold front causing these storms, the winds are already gusting to around 40 mph in parts of Vermont.  Here in St. Albans, the wind is now strong enough in gusts to bring a few small branches down onto my yard.

As of 2 p.m., Vermont utilties report only scattered, minor power failures. But that problem could increase as the afternoon wears on.

As the main band of rain hits, the tall clouds associated with it will probably pull down some even stronger winds blowing aloft and bring them down here. So when the rain first hits, expect some areas of Vermont to see winds gust to around 50 mph.  A wind advisory remains in effect.

The main, heaviest rain band with the strongest winds will get into the Champlain Valley around 3 p.m. and well into Vermont by 4 p.m., so expect the roughest weather then.

On a side note, we're calling these thunderstorms, but there is not much lightning and thunder with these otherwise strong storms. That happens frequently with autumn cold fronts; all the elements of severe thunderstorms come through, except the thunder. Oh well.

When the rain hits, it will come down hard, and as I said this morning the downpours, combined with fallen leaves clogging storm drains, could lead to some street flooding in spots.

The torrential rain and strongest winds won't last all that long in any one spot, but look for falling temperatures some steady winds and rains through the evening.

This isn't an end-of-the-world kind of storm, but we're not used to it because it's been so calm lately. So when the storm hits, slow way down if your driving, and stay away from any downed power lines or trees.

Just stay inside, enjoy the excitement of the stormy weather, and look forward to more bright, sunny, calm weather for the rest of the week, starting tomorrow.