textproduct: Hastings

KEY MESSAGES

- Rain showers arrive on Wednesday and last through Wednesday night. No snow is expected.

- A few thunderstorms are possible Wednesday evening into Wednesday night. Severe weather is not expected, but a few storms could produce small hail.

- Another shot of rain/snow moves through Friday into Friday night, but highest precip totals are favored to be to the east.

- Drier and warmer (not overly hot) conditions return early next week.

DISCUSSION

Issued at 200 PM CDT Tue Mar 31 2026

Winds are on a decreasing trend, which will continue into this evening and tonight. Wind direction will also gradually switch around to the east by Wednesday morning. Cloud cover will also increase ahead of the storm system impacting the region on Wednesday.

This system will bring periods of rain to the area starting late Wednesday morning and lasting through Wednesday night. Models have trended a touch warmer and further north with any snow potential. Instead, there is an increasing potential for a few thunderstorms Wednesday evening into Wednesday night. The main storm threat is expected to remain to our south and east...along a stationary boundary. But at least a few isolated storms remain possible across most of the forecast area. Instability is limited (100-500 j/kg MUCAPE), but this will be partially offset by synoptic lift ahead of the surface low. Deep-layer shear is strong, and melting levels will be low, so a few of the strongest storms will be capable of producing some sub-severe hail.

In total, precipitation totals are favored to be highest in the northeast and lightest in the southwest. Some areas to the south and west of the tri-cities may struggle to see 0.10", while isolated areas of eastern Nebraska may see over 1.00". Of course, given the isolated/spotty coverage of thunderstorms, pinning down exact totals will remain difficult.

A few showers could linger past sunrise on Thursday, but otherwise drier and slightly warmer conditions are expected to return. Another system will move through Friday into Friday night, but many models keep our area mostly (or even completely) dry. The best chance for any meaningful precip will be to the east.

Strong northwest winds increase behind this system Friday night into Saturday. Winds may not be quite as strong as today (Tuesday), but gusts over 40 MPH are possible (30-70% chance).

Friday and Saturday nights look to be the coldest nights of the week, with widespread temperatures in the 20s. It might be a good idea to drain hoses and sprinklers that been used earlier this spring. Ridging then returns to the western CONUS early next week, resulting in a return to above-normal temperatures.

AVIATION /18Z TAFS THROUGH 18Z WEDNESDAY/

Issued at 1150 AM CDT Tue Mar 31 2026

For KGRI/KEAR Airports:

VFR conditions persist through most of the TAF window, but MVFR ceilings are likely to return after 15Z Wednesday. Periods of rain arrive Wednesday afternoon and persist through Wednesday night.

North winds today gradually decrease tonight and turn to the east for Wednesday.

GID WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES

NE...None. KS...None.