When will storms arrive in Tampa Bay on Wednesday? Here’s a look.

Michaela Mulligan, Tampa Bay Times
Updated ·2 min read

A line of storms riding a cold front could bring severe weather to the Tampa Bay area by Wednesday afternoon.

Forecasters for the National Weather Service said the strong storms could bring with them thunder, damaging winds, large hail and the possibility of a tornado or two. A large swath of the Florida peninsula — including Tampa Bay — has a “slight” risk of severe weather, according to the weather service’s Storm Prediction Center.

A “slight” risk is the second level on a scale of 1 out of 5, with “marginal” being the lowest chance of severe weather and “high” being the greatest chance.

Here’s when to expect storms in Tampa Bay, and just how strong they may be.

When will stormy weather begin in Tampa Bay?

The northern region of Florida was already experiencing strong weather pushing down from Georgia Wednesday morning. The storms will continue to slither down the state through the day.

Forecasters anticipate Pasco County and parts of north Pinellas County could begin to see storms by 1 p.m. and southern areas of Tampa Bay could see them as late as 5 p.m.

A simulated radar posted to social media late Tuesday by the weather service also showed storms settling into the northern areas of Tampa Bay by 1 p.m. and sweeping south through the area during the afternoon.

The simulated radar shows the rough weather moving out of the area in the late afternoon and early evening.

How strong will the storms be?

On Tuesday, Spectrum Bay News 9 meteorologist Kyle Hanson told the Tampa Bay Times that severe storms were possible.

“I think the main concern is strong wind gusts,” Hanson said. “I would say that it is in the realm of possibility for larger hail and a brief tornado.”

The Tampa Bay area, along with much of the Florida peninsula, is under a wind advisory from 11 a.m. until 5 p.m. The advisory states wind gusts up to 50 mph are possible.

The weather service placed Sumter, Citrus, Hernando and Pasco County under a tornado watch until 5 p.m. A tornado watch means a tornado is possible within the warning area. A tornado warning is issued when a tornado has been sighted or shown up on a weather radar.