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Orlando Weather Forecast: May 18, 2023
Orlando and Central Florida saw damaging wind gusts, heavy rain, and hail as storms passed through the region on Thursday.
ORLANDO, Fla. - Tonight's low: 71 degrees | Tomorrow's high: 90 degrees
Main weather concerns: The sea breezes will become active and collide through the center of the state in the afternoon. A few storms could get strong featuring heavy rain, lightning, gusty winds, and small hail. Before the storms begin, afternoon highs will soar to the low-90s across the Orlando metro and reach the mid-80s along our east coast beaches. Stay weather aware.
BEACHES: The beaches start great but, will end on a stormy note. Highs seaside soar into the mid-80s, with a mix of sun and clouds for much of the day. The late afternoon hours will bring an increase in storm coverage. Storms could produce some heavy rain and many lightning strikes with the chance of gusty winds. Rip current threat stands in a moderate range so make sure to swim near an open lifeguard stand.
THEME PARKS: It will be a hot day at the theme parks with temperatures peaking at 92 degrees with a lot of sunshine to start. After 2 p.m. scattered storms could pop off with scattered coverage.
OUTLOOK: Summer-like weather continues for the rest of this week and continues into the weekend. You can expect hot afternoon highs and daily afternoon/ evening storm chances. Friday-Sunday looks fairly active as well with a 40-50% chance for strong storms across central Florida featuring heavy rain, frequent lightning, and gusty winds at times. While rain chances will be lowered overall for the start of your weekend, it looks like the rainy season is slowly sneaking into Central Florida! Stay tuned and depend on the FOX 35 Storm team!
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Below is a list of weather updates from Thursday:
9:27 PM – Westbound lanes of Interstate 4 have reopened after being closed for several hours due to six different crashes involving 15 vehicles. In total, five people were transported to area hospitals. Witnesses told troopers with the Florida Highway Patrol that it was raining during the time of the crashes. The sequence of events that led to these crashes is still under investigation, troopers said.
8 PM – Ominous skies over Kissimmee as a severe thunderstorm moves in from the north. Winds may gust over 60mph as has been indicated by radar by this storm in Orlando. We are live on FOX 35 PLUS.
7:19 PM – HAIL ALERT: A huge storm over Orlando has prompted a Severe Thunderstorm Warning with 60 mph gusts and penny-sized hail being observed!
7:15 PM – Orlando Utilities Commission is reporting power outages that are impacting over 4,000 customers in Orlando. See an Outage Map here.
7:08 PM – A Severe Thunderstorm Warning has been issued for Orange County until 7:45 PM. This means a severe storm is in progress in the warned area. Details here.
6:33 PM – Welcome To Rockville festival in Daytona Beach has reopened gates at the Daytona International Speedway after closing due to inclement weather.
6:25 PM – A multi-vehicle crash in Volusia County has closed all westbound lanes of I-4 near DeLand. Traffic is backed up for ten miles.
5:06 PM – Welcome To Rockville festival in Daytona Beach has asked guests to evacuate the Daytona International Speedway and seek shelter due to inclement weather.
5:01 PM – A Severe Thunderstorm Warning has been issued for Volusia County until 5:45 PM. This means a severe storm is in progress in the warned area. Details here.
4:39 PM – A severe storm is drifting toward the Flagler Co. beaches bringing the potential for 60mph winds and penny-sized hail. Stay with the FOX 35 Storm Team for continuing coverage this evening. Today is a FOX 35 Storm Alert Day. Forecast here.