Tornado watch ends at 8 p.m.

FORT WORTH -- As the noon hour passed Wednesday, North Texans were wondering if the predicted severe weather was going to show.

Still, weather service officials were warning people not to let their guards down, because the ingredients for severe weather were still out there; they just hadn't joined forces yet.

The weather service even issued a tornado watch for North Texas that is expected to end at 8 p.m.

A day ago, National Weather Service meteorologists said to expect trouble between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m.

At 8:45 a.m., storms were beginning to move into the Metroplex, but there was no sign of the damaging wind, quarter size hail and heavy rain that had been predicted.

Nevertheless, a dry line boundary spent the morning moving from around San Angelo in West Texas. It reached Palo Pinto County at about 1:30 p.m.

Meanwhile, a ready supply of moisture from the Gulf of Mexico was still in place over North Texas.

But one severe weather ingredient was tardy Wednesday.

An upper level disturbance that was supposed to combine with the dry line was still up in the Texas Panhandle early Wednesday afternoon, said Nick Hampshire, a weather service meteorologist.

Severe weather was still a strong possibility Wednesday, Hampshire said, if the dry line pushes further east into the moist gulf air.

But, he added, more afternoon heating at the surface was needed to ignite the thunderstorms. It was 71 degrees at 2 p.m.

He noted that there was a chance that North Texas would be spared from severe weather, but the factors could finally form up east of the Metroplex.

Check back for more details.