Tornadogeddon 2010 (but not here)

Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas, and extreme Southwest Missouri are in the middle of a major tornado outbreak, with several twisters already sighted. That part of the country is at the bullseye for a High Risk of severe weather, plus the ever-popular Particularly Dangerous Situation (PDS) tornado watches.

The word "tornadogeddon" is already making an appearance on blogs and Facebook. We can expect this outbreak will provide enough fodder for at least one episode of "Storm Stories" on The Weather Channel.

In Southeast Missouri, there's no reason to panic, as the atmosphere is much more stable (thanks to the unseasonably cool weather). Thunderstorms are in the forecast for tonight and again tomorrow night, but the odds for severe storms and tornadoes are low (but above zero). The bigger threat is heavy rain and flooding.

The latest Hazardous Weather Outlook from the Paducah forecast office says vaguely, "THERE IS A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS THROUGH TONIGHT. ISOLATED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CANNOT BE RULED OUT. LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN IS POSSIBLE."

It continues, "THERE IS A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY. THE BEST CHANCE OF STORMS IS TUESDAY NIGHT. SEVERE WEATHER CANNOT BE RULED OUT. HEAVY RAIN WILL BE POSSIBLE."