First look at tonight's storms

Hail-producing storms are now entering Waterloo, Iowa with Tornado Warnings (at 8:30pm). This is the cluster that will be monitored as it travels southeast. Current movement brings the area across the Mississippi River at Savanna and Dubuque around 10:30pm. The storms should be losing a little intensity by that time (our atmosphere is much more stable than Eastern Iowa's is). Straight-line wind gusts to 60 and flooding rain will be a threat as this storm dives southeast (mainly south and west of the Rockford metro).

The Storm Prediction Center usually puts out a "Mesoscale Discussion" before issuing any Tornado or Severe Storm Watches.
-ERIC