Christmas Storm Roaring to Life

A developing Gulf storm will bring bouts of heavy rain to eastern Texas, southern Louisiana, southern Mississippi, southern Alabama and the Florida Panhandle Sunday. New Orleans could easily experience more flooding. Along the northern Gulf Coast, between 1 and 6 inches of rain could fall. Rain will begin to spread northward later Sunday. A few thunderstorms could turn severe along the immediate northern Gulf Coast. On Monday, the storm intensifies as it heads northward toward the Ohio Valley and Mid-Atlantic States. Rain from the lower Mississippi River Valley eastward will be heaviest from northern Florida to the Carolinas where between 1 and 4 inches could fall. Some severe thunderstorms may develop across Florida, southern Georgia and the coastal Carolinas in the warmest air. The cold air will sweep in later Monday on strong west to northwest winds, changing the rain to snow before ending in Arkansas and northern Louisiana. Monday night and early Tuesday, the changeover to snow will rapidly shift eastward across the Tennessee Valley and into the southern Appalachians and north Georgia. The Cumberland Plateau and the Smoky Mountains could pick up significant snowfall. Tuesday will be a windy, chilly day east of the Mississippi with lingering snow in the southern Appalachians but dry overall. After a quiet Wednesday, region-wide, showery rain will develop over the southern Plains Thursday as a new storm tries to organize.