Tallahassee could see severe weather Saturday, May 2, along with something it hasn’t experienced in more than a month — an actual rainy day.
A warm front is expected to move up from the Gulf of Mexico on Friday night and early Saturday morning, bringing thunderstorms and badly needed showers to a state in the grips of a historic drought and a fierce wildfire season. Jasmine Montgomery, meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Tallahassee, said all modes of severe weather are possible.
“We’re mostly focused with … the strong to damaging wind gusts,” she said. “But we could also have hail and tornadoes.”
The Storm Prediction Center is calling for a slight risk (2 out of 5) for severe weather on Saturday for a broad area that includes Panama City, Apalachicola, Tallahassee, Perry and Cross City.
Montgomery said Tallahassee could see 1 to 2 inches of rain, with isolated higher amounts — too little to put a dent in what has become the city’s worst drought on record.
“Even though this is all beneficial rainfall, it’s not going to be enough to end the drought,” she said. “It’s going to feel good. At least it will prevent it from getting worse this week.”
Forecasts called for rain earlier in the week but little materialized in the Tallahassee area. But Saturday should be the real deal. She said the timing of the storms depends on how fast the front moves through.
“For Saturday, it’s going to kind of be an all-day thing,” she said. “It’s going to start out in the morning, and it’s going to continue at least until early or mid-afternoon.”
Tallahassee got only .41 inches of rain in all of April. The last time the city got an inch or more of rain was March 16, when 1.45 inches was recorded at Tallahassee International Airport. Since last July, the city’s rainfall deficit has climbed to 20-plus inches.
The prospect of severe weather and heavy rain may make Saturday April 1, 2026 a washout in the Tallahassee area.
Montgomery said a cold front will swoop in after the warm front, bringing drier conditions for the early part of next week. Rainfall chances increase again later in the week.
Contact Jeff Burlew at jburlew@tallahassee.com or 850-599-2180.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Tallahassee forecast: Severe weather threat with needed rain