Heavy rain, flooding expected in DFW overnight; tornadoes possible farther west

The Dallas-Fort Worth region could see heavy rain, strong gusts of wind and hail Wednesday night into Thursday morning, and there’s a chance for tornadoes farther west.

After rain pummeled DFW early Wednesday, another line of storms is expected to move into the region after midnight, according to the National Weather Service. Those storms could bring potentially damaging wind gusts as high as 25 mph along with hail and rain. There’s a strong threat of flooding, according to the weather service, because of the rainfall that already accumulated Wednesday morning.

A flash flood watch is in effect until Thursday at 7 p.m. The alert notes “heavy rainfall over already saturated soils will likely lead to an increasing flash flood threat through daybreak Thursday and primarily north of I-20.”

And for areas west and north of Fort Worth including Wise and Parker counties, a tornado watch has been issued until midnight.

Sarah Barnes, a weather service meteorologist, said the mix of warmth and a low pressure system is leading to the potentially inclement weather.

“It’s a perfect spring set-up now that we’re getting warmer temperatures and sunshine every now and again,” she said.

People out on the roads overnight should be aware of weather conditions and never try to cross a road if it’s flooded with water.

The storms could be heaviest in Fort Worth after 2 a.m. and last until around 11 a.m. Thursday, according to the weather service forecast. There’s a 20 percent of showers and thunderstorms before 8 p.m. Thursday.