Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 353 AM EDT Thu May 09 2019 Valid 12Z Thu May 09 2019 - 12Z Sat May 11 2019 ...Flash flooding is likely for Texas and Louisiana on Thursday and Friday, with severe weather possible as well... ...Late-season heavy snow is expected for higher elevations of the Central and Southern Rockies... ...Record-breaking heat expected for the Pacific Northwest while much below average temperatures settle into the Central/Southern High Plains... A cold front will continue tracking southeastward across the central and eastern U.S. through the end of the workweek, with rain and thunderstorms along and ahead of it. On Thursday, thunderstorms are forecast to spread across the Great Lakes region, Ohio and Tennessee Valleys, and into the Lower Mississippi Valley and Southern Plains. Heavy rain is possible for these areas, which could cause flash flooding, but the highest risk for excessive rainfall will be in portions of southeastern Texas and Louisiana, where there is a Moderate Risk in place today. Severe weather is also possible today, and there is a Slight Risk of severe weather in effect from the Storm Prediction Center for southeastern Texas into the Lower Mississippi Valley and parts of the Tennessee and Ohio Valleys. On Friday, the cold front should progress eastward toward the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, bringing showers and thunderstorms to those regions. However, the front is expected to stall across the Southeast into the Lower Mississippi Valley and along the Western Gulf Coast, so another wet day is forecast for those areas on Friday. Another Moderate Risk of excessive rainfall/flash flooding is in place for southeastern Texas on Friday. As an upper-level trough persists over the West, lower elevations could see scattered rain showers and thunderstorms, while higher elevations can expect snow. Heavy snow of 6 to 12 inches, with locally higher amounts, are forecast for the San Juan Mountains and the Central/Southern Rockies. A few inches of snow is expected for the Wind River and Bighorn Mountains, Wasatch, and Sierra Nevada. Light snow across northeastern Minnesota, northern Wisconsin, and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan is expected to come to an end Thursday. Cold high pressure will settle into the Northern/Central Plains behind the cold front, causing colder than average temperatures across the Rockies, Plains, and Upper Midwest. High temperatures are forecast to be 25 to 35 degrees below average across the Central High Plains on Thursday and the Southern High Plains on Friday. Freeze Watches are in effect for the Central Plains. Meanwhile, persistent upper-level ridging in the Pacific Northwest will lead to the possibility of record high temperatures on both Thursday and Friday. The warm and dry conditions could cause fire weather danger, so Red Flag Warnings are in effect there. Tate Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_ndfd.php