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An exceptionally intense storm system is underway across the Plains states and will bring disruptive and, in some cases, dangerous weather to the central and eastern United States. Strong tornadoes, blizzard conditions, flooding rains and damaging winds have begun or are expected with the cyclone as it batters the Lower 48 into early Wednesday.

The low-pressure system began to rapidly form in Oklahoma late Monday and will next sweep through the Midwest on Tuesday and Michigan on Tuesday night. In the storm’s “warm sector,” from the Gulf Coast to the Outer Banks of the Carolinas, an outbreak of severe thunderstorms is anticipated Monday night into Tuesday, including hurricane-force straight-line winds and the potential for tornadoes.

“Extreme environments tend to end in extreme results, and the expected environment is quickly trending toward extreme,” wrote the National Weather Service office in Mobile, Ala. Concern is growing that fierce jet-stream winds aloft may help sculpt thunderstorms into rotating cells that will produce strong tornadoes Monday night into Tuesday morning along the Gulf Coast.

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A tornado watch covers the zone from southeast Louisiana, including New Orleans, to the Florida Panhandle until 7 a.m. Central time Tuesday. The Weather Service is callling for an intense thunderstorm squall line to sweep across the region, potentially producing tornadoes (a couple of which could be strong), large hail and straight-line wind gusts up to 75 mph.

The system’s cold side has its own hazards. Parts of the Midwest are expecting a foot or more of snow and, in some places, “ferocious whiteouts,” according to the Weather Service. Blizzard warnings are in effect into Tuesday from the Texas and Oklahoma panhandles into southern Nebraska, including much of western Kansas.

On Monday evening, heavy, windblown snow expanded from the Texas and Oklahoma panhandles into Iowa and western Illinois. Some of the most extreme conditions were occurring in western Kansas, where up to 11 inches of snow had fallen amid wind gusts over 50 mph. Portions of Interstate 70 were shut down amid the blizzard, and thundersnow was reported in Dodge City, Kan., where storm chaser footage showed whiteout conditions during the afternoon.

In extreme western Oklahoma and southwest Kansas, the Weather Service relayed reports of closed roads and stranded motorists “all over” Cimarron County, Okla., and Seward County, Kan. Emergency management was advising residents in both counties to shelter in place.

On Tuesday, the storm begins a second life on the East Coast. Widespread strong winds of 50 mph or greater are likely for cities along the Interstate 95 corridor in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast, with a few gusts topping 70 mph at the coastline. Scattered power outages are likely at least, reminiscent of the deadly nor’easter the week before Christmas that left 800,000 customers in the dark.

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The winds should be so strong that the Weather Service has considered hoisting hurricane-force wind warnings for mariners off the coast of New England. Those winds will help pile water against the Mid-Atlantic and northeast shoreline, causing moderate coastal flooding in several areas; in some places several feet of inundation above normally dry land could occur.

The storm has an enormous wind field. More than 150 million people are under wind alerts from New Mexico to Maine. Millions more are under wind alerts in the Pacific Northwest, from a separate storm predicted to bring blizzard conditions to the Cascade and Olympic mountains. Blizzard warnings issued for the area by the Weather Service are the first in 11 years. Seattle and Portland are both under wind advisories into Tuesday, but expect just chilly rain.

Weather alerts are in effect for 49 out of the 50 United States, North Dakota being the lone exception.

As if that isn’t enough, most of the East Coast from Florida to Maine is in line for at least 2 inches of rain; some areas could see 4 inches or so. Mild temperatures will melt snow from the weekend storm in the Northeast, combining with new rainwater to lead to “potential significant” flooding, according to the Weather Service, especially near rivers just inland from Interstate 95. More than 85 million people are under flood watches, many of them in a rare Level 3 out of 4 risk area for flash flooding.

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Incredibly, another storm — perhaps more intense in some respects — could affect a lot of the same areas with similar hazards Friday and Saturday, with a blast of frigid air in its wake.

It’s a lot to keep track of, so we’ve broken down the hazards and identified which cities will face what risks focused on the early-week storm. (Read this article on the late-week storm and cold: Intense late-week storm to drag season’s coldest air into Lower 48.)

Find your location in our city-by-city breakdown below:

Severe thunderstorm and tornado risk

The parent storm system is nestled within a potent jet-stream dip. In addition to helping nudge air upward to form thunderstorms, this jet-stream dip, known as a trough, imparts plentiful wind shear — a change of wind speed and/or direction with height. In those environments, storms that span multiple layers of atmosphere tend to rotate.

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In this case, a roaring and, in some places, record-setting low-level jet stream for the time of year will slice overhead with 80-plus mph winds barely a mile above the ground. In addition to spawning tornadoes, some of that momentum may be mixed to the surface in the form of destructive straight-line winds.

Nearly 10 million people along the Gulf Coast are in a Level 3 out of 5 risk zone for severe storms Monday night. On Tuesday, about 12 million people from Tallahassee to Fayetteville, N.C., are in a Level 3 zone.

City-by-city severe storm threat:

• By late Monday night, a violent squall line will probably come together around the time the storms approach New Orleans. Both strong tornadoes and destructive winds will be possible.
• The squall line threat continues overnight Monday into early Tuesday morning in Gulfport, Miss.; Mobile; Birmingham and, to a lesser extent, Huntsville, Ala.; the risk will be greatest toward the Gulf Coast.
• In the Florida Panhandle, Pensacola could see some severe weather to start Tuesday before the line weakens some in the morning.
• As the line of storms may be slightly less intense Tuesday morning when it approaches northern Georgia, Atlanta may avoid the worst of the storms. Still, a wall of rain and gusty winds is expected to work through the metro area during the morning or early afternoon hours. Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport could face some delays.

Tuesday afternoon becomes problematic once again. Daytime heating rejuvenates the squall line as it closes in on the Southeast coast — and there are indications that more storms could form ahead of the renewed line, making for two possible rounds of severe weather. Tallahassee and Jacksonville, Fla., and Charleston, S.C., are among cities that could be affected.

Mid-Atlantic and Northeast: High winds and flooding

On Tuesday, the “warm sector,” or slice of mild air preceding the low-pressure system’s cold front, is expected to engulf the East Coast. That will set the stage for heavy downpours. Flood watches blanket the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast. The strong jet stream, meanwhile, is forecast to contribute to serious wind gusts. The winds could also whip up an ocean surge and flooding along the coast. Here’s a look at what you can expect in various East Coast cities:

• Richmond: 2 to 3 inches of rain during the day Tuesday, with winds up to 40 mph.
• Washington, D.C.: At least 1.5 to 2.5 inches of rain Tuesday, with winds gusting up to 50 mph. Flood watch and wind advisory in effect, with the worst conditions expected in the evening.

Downpours, winds could cause flooding, power cuts in D.C. area Tuesday

• Baltimore: 2 to 3 inches of rain Tuesday, with winds gusting up to 35 mph; worst conditions in the evening. Wind advisory, flood watch and coastal flood watch. Tides up to 3 feet above normal.
• Philadelphia: 2 to 3 inches of rain between late Tuesday morning and early Wednesday; worst conditions at night. Flood watch and coastal flood watch.
• New York City: 2 to 4 inches of rain between Tuesday early afternoon and midday Wednesday. Flood watch. Wind gusts to 40 to 50 mph in Manhattan; 50 to 60 mph along the coast, under a high-wind watch.

• Hartford, Conn.: Afternoon rain and snow Tuesday, with a low-end chance of thunder. Winds gusting upward of 45 mph on Tuesday night. Little to no snow accumulation expected. Rainfall of 1.5 to 3 inches. Flood watch.
• Providence, R.I.: 1.5 to 3 inches of rain Tuesday evening through Wednesday morning. Wind gusting upward of 55 mph. High-wind watch and flood watch.
• Boston: Winds gusting at times over 50 mph Tuesday night through Wednesday. 2 to 3 inches of rain. High wind watch and flood watch. Gusts may approach 70 mph over Cape Cod.
• Portland, Maine: High wind watch, flood watch and coastal flood watch. Worst is Tuesday night into Wednesday. Gusts over 50 mph at times. Rain tapers down Wednesday evening. 1.5 to 2.5 inches total. Little to no snow accumulation, though a few wet flakes may mix in Tuesday during the onset.

A lot of factors pointing toward significant flooding potential in the Northeast beginning later on Tuesday. Heavy rain and unusually juicy feed of moisture almost perfectly intersecting a fresh snowpack. A lot of the 2+ inches of rain will fall in about 6 hours. pic.twitter.com/rvzTaYHVk5

The cold side: Plains, Midwest snowstorm

A swath of snow, with accumulations locally exceeding a foot, will fall on the cold side of the system from northeast New Mexico to northern Michigan. These areas will also experience strong winds, particularly in the Plains where blizzard warnings are in effect.

• Amarillo, Tex.: Chance of snow showers with winds gusting up to 55 mph on Monday night. Improvement Tuesday.
• Dodge City, Kan.: A blizzard warning is in effect into Tuesday morning, with several inches of snow and wind gusts up to 55 mph.
• Kansas City, Mo.: Snow on Monday night lingers into Tuesday afternoon. Winds gusting up to 45 mph at times. Accumulations of 2 to 5 inches. Winter weather advisory.
• Omaha: Winter storm warning. 6 to 11 inches of snow, winding down Tuesday morning. Wind gusts up to 45 mph. Near-blizzard conditions possible.

• Des Moines: Winter storm warning. 7 to 13 inches of snow through Tuesday evening. Winds gusting to 40+ mph. Blizzard conditions possible for a time.
• Chicago: Winter weather advisory. 2 to 5 inches of wet snow, mainly Monday night through Tuesday morning, before a switch to rain. Gusts up to 35 mph.
• Milwaukee: Periods of snow Monday night through early Wednesday, possibly mixing with rain at times Tuesday. Lesser accumulations of 1 to 3 inches near Lake Michigan (winter weather advisory), with 4 to 8 inches inland (under winter storm watch).
• Detroit: Wet snow and gusts up to 35 mph are expected Tuesday morning, with about 2 to 4 inches expected before a change to rain. A winter weather advisory is in effect.

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