A hazardous weather alert is in effect for Northeast Ohio, including the Cleveland and Akron areas, as strong to severe thunderstorms and heat move through the region. The National Weather Service warns of damaging winds,

At least five states are expected to deal with severe weather this weekend, according to the National Weather Service. Unfortunately, this month has been pretty tough for the United States. During the Fourth of July weekend,

Southeast Michigan faces the highest risk with downbursts capable of producing wind gusts up to 60 MPH and the potential for localized flooding from slow-moving storms.

The intense thunderstorm may have looked and sounded like a tornado, but that's not what happened, according to forecasters who examined the damage.

This means that instead of receiving a tornado warning just 15 minutes before a storm strikes, residents could get up to two hours’ notice. The technology also allows for more targeted alerts, potentially narrowing warnings from entire regions to just one or two counties.

We are tracking an area of rain and a few thunderstorms for tonight. Hopefully, the dry areas, south of I-70, will get some rain tonight.

The National Weather Service issued multiple severe weather warnings for parts of southeast Wisconsin on Friday, July 11.

Experts said warnings issued in the run-up to this weekend’s flooding were as timely and accurate as possible, but questions about whether the alerts reached people most at risk remain.