341 FXUS01 KWBC 301952 PMDSPD Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 351 PM EDT Thu Apr 30 2026 Valid 00Z Fri May 01 2026 - 00Z Sun May 03 2026 ...Widespread thunderstorms will continue along a quasi-stationary frontal boundary across portions of Texas into the Lower Mississippi Valley through Friday bringing scattered flash flooding.... ...Heavy snow continues for higher elevations of the central/southern Rockies through Friday... ...Cooler, much below average temperatures will continue into the early weekend for the eastern and central U.S. while conditions warm across the West... Widespread showers and thunderstorms will continue through the end of the work week along and north of a stalling frontal boundary stretching west along the Gulf Coast through southern/western Texas and into portions of the southern High Plains/Southwest. A favorably timed upper-wave and anomalously high moisture pooling along the boundary will lead to robust, heavy rainfall producing storms with the boundary serving to support repeated rounds moving over the same areas. A Slight Risk of Excessive Rainfall (level 2/4) remains in effect for portions of central Texas and the Texas Hill Country where scattered instances of flash flooding are possible through tonight, with a broader Marginal Risk (level 1/4) through the region for a few more isolated instances. The threat expands eastward on Friday with a Slight Risk extending from central/eastern Texas into the Lower Mississippi Valley for more scattered instances of flash flooding. A focused corridor of potentially more numerous instances of flash flooding is possible generally along the I-10 corridor. The front will begin to move southward into the Gulf and eastward through the southeast Saturday with more progressive storms resulting in less widespread heavy rainfall, though isolated flash flooding will remain possible. A developing coastal low could bring some more moderate rainfall northward into the Carolinas/southern Mid-Atlantic Saturday as well. In addition to the rainfall, moist upslope flow along the central/southern Rockies will bring heavy snow to higher elevations through Friday, with totals of 6-12"+ expected. Some snow may mix in for adjacent higher elevations of the High Plains, though accumulations here should remain limited. Elsewhere, lingering showers will gradually taper off from west to east across New England this evening and into the early morning hours Friday as a low pressure/frontal system passes through the region. A secondary surface wave/front passing through the Midwest to Interior Northeast will also bring some scattered light showers tonight and through the day tomorrow. Some wintry precipitation may mix in for portions of the Interior Northeast, but no accumulations are expected. A frontal system moving into the northwestern U.S. may bring some widely scattered showers and thunderstorms to the northern Rockies as well as the Pacific Northwest/northern California Saturday. Cooler, below average temperatures have settled in across most of the eastern and central U.S. following a cold front passage and will linger into the weekend. Forecast highs the next couple of days generally range in the 40s and 50s from the northern Plains east through the Great Lakes and into New England; the 50s and 60s for the central/southern Plains east through the Mississippi/Ohio Valleys and into the Mid-Atlantic; and the 60s with some low 70s through the Southeast. Morning lows dropping into the lower 30s Friday have prompted some Frost/Freeze related advisories for portions of the Midwest/Great Lakes into the Appalachians. Widespread precipitation and the sagging frontal boundary along the Gulf Coast will bring some much cooler highs in the 60s here as well. Only Florida will remain warmer south of the boundary, with 80s and 90s forecast. Meanwhile, warmer, above average temperatures will spread across the western U.S. through the end of the week, with highs rising into the 60s and 70s for the Interior West/West Coast, 80s for inland California, and 80s and 90s into the Desert Southwest. These warmer temperatures will begin to spread across the northern/central Rockies and into the High Plains by Saturday, with 60s and 70s expected. Putnam Graphics available at https://www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_ndfd.php $$