ST. LOUIS — A massive storm system is set to race across the Midwest Wednesday creating strong winds and areas of severe weather. The worst weather has moved through the western portion of the metro St. Louis area and will move through the Metro East before 2 p.m. The storms will push toward the Interstate 57 corridor in central Illinois through the afternoon where the threat of severe weather will be highest.
RELATED: Check our live interactive radar
The main severe weather threat will be damaging, gusty winds that could exceed 60 mph. There's also a secondary, lower risk of a couple of weak tornadoes, especially south and east of St. Louis during the early afternoon hours.
Strong winds up in the clouds will enhance the intensity of the storms with gusty winds of 40-60 mph possible along the line at times.
The line of storms will move into the eastern portion of the our area and along the I-57 corridor during the afternoon. Southeast Missouri and southern Illinois have a better environment to see a few, weak tornadoes, but it's the winds in general that will be the biggest problem Wednesday.
Download the free 5 On Your Side app to get the latest watches and warnings and track conditions live with our interactive radar. Use the links below to download now.
5 On Your Side news app
iPhone | Google Play
Outside of thunderstorms, winds will generally gust 30 to 40 mph with higher gusts possible to the east and southeast of St. Louis where a wind advisory is in effect for Wednesday. A few power outages are possible with the strong winds and loose items like garbage cans and patio furniture could be blown around.
Rainfall is expected to be heavy during the storms which may cause some minor drainage problems during peak intensity. Many of us will see between and inch and an inch and a half of rain.
Colder weather will return to the area as the winds continue to be gusty on Thursday. Under a mostly cloudy sky, temperatures will remain in the 40s all day.