Severe thunderstorm, potential tornadoes expected in Nashville amid SEC Tournament

A broken line of severe thunderstorms are expected to sweep through Nashville — host site of the SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament — during the early morning hours Saturday, bringing with them the potential for damaging winds, large hail and even tornadoes, according to the latest from the National Weather Service.

The multiple supercells should cross into Tennessee around midnight CT headed East and could reach the Nashville area around 2-4 am CT Saturday morning, according to NWS projections. These supercells are expected to be rotating and capable of damaging straightline winds with speeds from 60-75 mph and large damaging hail between 1-2 inches in diameter, with the potential for tornadoes as strong as EF2 or more, according to NashvilleSevereWeather.com’s Friday afternoon update.

NashvilleSevereWeather.com gave a silver lining that current projections also show the storms weakening slightly as they travel Northeast through Mississippi and into West Tennessee. Though that’s hardly a certainty and they could still strengthen, especially once the storms pass over I-65 headed East.

After a projected lull in the morning, another round of severe thunderstorms could roll through Nashville throughout the day Saturday, potentially bringing with it dangerous and volatile conditions that could bring possible hail, tornadoes and strong winds, with the potential for flooding.

With the SEC Tournament in town, Nashville is once again loaded for bear with SEC fans from all across the league footprint, along with the normal crowds visiting Music City. The SEC has yet to make any determinations about Saturday’s tournament semifinals, which begin at noon CT with top-seeded Auburn playing No. 4 seeded Tennessee.

This weekend is also the 17-year anniversary of the 2008 tornado outbreak in Atlanta, where an isolated EF2 tornado caused widespread damaged across downtown Atlanta, including to the CNN Center and the Georgia Dome, which was hosting the SEC Tournament at the time.

The 2008 tornado hit the Georgia Dome in the middle of a game between Alabama and Mississippi State, which had just been sent to overtime thanks to a shot by the Crimson Tide’s Mykel Riley. The storm ripped panels off the exterior of the arena and tore two holes into the Dome’s roof. After an hourlong delay, the game resumed but the next game was postponed as the remainder of the SEC Tournament was moved to Georgia Tech‘s Alexander Memorial Coliseum.