Tricky forecast for us tonight

Severe thunderstorms and tornadoes are hammering parts of Tennessee and Kentucky this afternoon, and it would be logical to assume those storms are heading our way.

They aren't, say meteorologists.

Instead, they say, we need to be looking to the southwest.

The severe weather in the Ohio and Tennessee valleys Tuesday afternoon eventually will move toward the North Carolina mountains but weaken. Meteorologist Pat Moore, of the National Weather Service office in Greer, S.C., said early Tuesday afternoon that some severe weather is possible, but those storms probably will lose their punch.

Instead, Moore says, the Charlotte area needs to be watching northeast Alabama and northwest Georgia.

The Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Okla., says there is a chance that a second area of severe weather could form this afternoon over Alabama and Georgia. If that were to happen, the storms would push across Atlanta and into the South Carolina upstate, eventually making a run at Charlotte in the early-morning hours.

Those are a lot of "if's."

Severe weather was forecast last Friday but didn't develop. Predicting the development of severe thunderstorms and tornadoes is a tricky business. Hence, our tricky forecast for tonight.

Moore's advice: "Monitor the forecast later tonight, especially before going to bed."