Weather Alerts For Ballenger Creek, MD

Closest strike: 4.47 miles Stay Alert! Remain in a safe area until there has been no lightning within 10 miles of this location for 30 minutes. Please be aware that lightning activity can remain high even when a storm is moving away from your location. Even if rain has stopped, do not leave your safe area until WeatherBug indicates that lightning is more than 10 miles away from this selected location. IF OUTDOORS Avoid water, high ground, and open spaces. Avoid all metal objects including electric wires, fences, and machinery. Find a safe area in a building or in a fully enclosed vehicle with the windows completely shut. Unsafe places include underneath canopies, small picnic or rain shelters, convertibles, or near trees. IF INDOORS Avoid water and stay away from doors and windows. Avoid using a hard line telephone. Take off headphones. Turn off, unplug, and stay away from appliances, computers, power tools, and TV sets. Lightning may strike exterior electric and phone lines, inducing shocks to inside equipment.

There is a Marginal Severe Storm Risk for your location. Continue reading for today's outlook from the National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center. -------------------- National Severe Storm Outlook THERE IS AN ENHANCED RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS PARTS OF THE MIDWEST/SOUTHERN GREAT LAKES AND SOUTHERN/CENTRAL PLAINS THERE IS A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS PARTS OF THE NORTHEAST SUMMARY Severe thunderstorms are expected this afternoon through tonight from the southern Plains into the Midwest. Large to giant hail, several tornadoes (some strong), and swaths of severe/damaging gusts are all likely, particularly from Iowa into the southern Great Lakes. 20Z Update A complex yet active severe weather day remains in the forecast for portions of the Midwest-OH Valley into the Southern Plains this afternoon into early tonight. While several lines were slightly adjusted to account for the latest guidance consensus, the following substantial changes and/or decisions were made: 1.) 30 percent wind probabilities were expanded southwestward into southwest and central OK to account for the possibility of more rapid upscale growth into one or more wind-producing MCSs or linear segments. 2.) Category 1/Marginal Risk probabilities for severe wind and hail were expanded west-southwest into NE along a frontal boundary to account for two possible scenarios. First, an isolated strong storm may develop within the next few hours along the boundary as a consequence of strong diurnal heating. Second, late tonight, there is low potential for gravity-wave associated convection on the immediate cool side of the frontal boundary, atop a stable boundary layer. 3.) Confidence is still too low for supercells across the Midwest to remain discrete for long periods of time, which would warrant a Categorical Moderate risk upgrade. Nonetheless, should a dominant supercell become sustained and discrete for at least a few hours, especially along the warm front over northeast IA into southern WI, a sustained and intense tornado will be possible. The rest of the forecast (see below) remains on track.

Pollen Index: 11.5 Pollen Level: high Predominant Pollen: Maple, Elm and Cedar/Juniper. Pollen concentrations for Wednesday will be at about the same level in the extremely high range. If you do suffer from allergies, tomorrow should be about as difficult outdoors as it was today.