Eyes to the sky Thursday afternoon. Forecasters now think the threat of severe weather is greater than they have in past days. An approaching cold front is likely to bring numerous storms, strong to severe, in the afternoon, early-evening hours.

From the National Weather Service: “The greatest threat will be south and east of the Triad, with the highest risk over the eastern Sandhills and the central and southern Coastal Plain, mainly south and east of Raleigh. Highly damaging straight-line winds, large hail, and a few significant tornadoes are all possible.”

The Storm Prediction Center classifies the risk as “moderate,” basically a 4 on the scale of 1-5.