As a kid, the month of June could not get here fast enough. School was over and it was time for fishing, surfing, and hanging out at the beach with friends.
As a meteorologist, I also loved June. Winter weather shenanigans were behind us. The Spring severe storm season was over, and it was time to put everything on auto pilot and enjoy the sunshine and warming temperatures, while getting a break from severe weather.
About five years ago, that quieter June weather began to evaporate. Storm systems began ramping up in intensity. In fact, it was June 14-19 where we saw a multi-day tornado outbreak in the Southeast, which was certainly out of the ordinary. The National Weather Service called it “unprecedented.” In addition to the tornadoes, causing widespread damage across north Georgia, we had a HUGE wedge tornado, the kind you would see across the Great Plains, hit Bleckley County, causing massive damage. Fortunately, no one was killed by the tornadoes. However, there was one lightning fatality at West Point Lake.

MCS radar image.
These tornadoes formed from an MCS. A Mesoscale Convective System. Basically, it is a large group of storms that form together, growing and merging with neighboring storms, creating a large cluster that can travel many hundreds of miles. An MCS is what brought the unprecedented tornadoes into Georgia in 2023. We saw this in 2024 as well and once again we are seeing it developing for this month. See graphic showing a radar view of what an MCS looks like.
Heat and humidity are the prime ingredients of an MCS. It appears we are going to have quite a bit of fuel for the fire this month. The Climate Prediction Center Outlook is calling for above average temperatures this month. (Average high is 87; average low is 68.) The gulf is extremely warm already with near record temperatures and a lot of that moist tropical air down there will be driven north this month. The CPC is also forecasting above average rainfall for June. (average June rainfall is 4.54.”)
On my Facebook page last month, I was asked by quite a few people if the nation’s “tornado alley” has shifted, after the outbreak of tornadoes from Michigan to Arkansas, and especially the deadly tornado in Kentucky. The answer is yes!

Shift in tornado alley
Accuweather provided me with this map. Back in the day, as many of us remember, tornadoes were most common across the Great Plains, from South Dakota, through Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas. About three years ago, the prime tornado formation zone moved east, into higher population areas. We saw a dramatic shift downward in Texas and Oklahoma. One other interesting note. We have also seen a dramatic decrease in tornado intensity. We still see the powerful EF 3 tornadoes, like the one last month in Kentucky. However, an EF 4 or EF 5 is something we have not seen in several years.
The outlook for the rest of the summer is also for above average temperatures (even in Alaska!) and above average rainfall.
Have a great June and be sure and stay updated on our new weather patterns.
Graphics: courtesy Accuweather