Dangerous tornadoes set to threaten the South Central states later today will next take aim on the Ohio Valley and South Friday into Saturday.

As will be the case over the South Central states today, the impending outbreak could yield multiple strong and long-tracking tornadoes across the Ohio Valley and South.

The result could be significant loss of life and widespread destruction in some communities.

The threat of severe weather will extend from the lower Ohio Valley to the central Gulf Coast during the daylight hours of Friday, then from the upper Ohio Valley to the Florida Panhandle Friday night.

Within that corridor, the tornado danger will be highest from far southern parts of Illinois and Indiana to eastern Mississippi and Alabama.

Cities at greatest risk for tornadoes include Paducah, Ky.; Evansville, Ind.; Nashville, Tenn.; Tupelo, Miss.; Meridian, Miss.; Huntsville, Ala.; and Birmingham, Ala.

The prime time for the potentially devastating tornadoes to develop will be the afternoon and evening hours of Friday.

Friday should start with heavy, gusty thunderstorms moving into the Ohio Valley and South. These thunderstorms would be the remains of today’s severe weather.

As clouds break for sunshine in the wake of this morning activity, the atmosphere will reload and set the stage for the main tornado outbreak later Friday.

The tornado threat will wane late Friday night, but it will not vanish completely as the weekend gets under way.

The eastern Carolinas, including Raleigh and Florence, will next be threatened Saturday afternoon.

Some of the severe weather on Saturday could even interfere with spring college football games.

In addition to the violent thunderstorms that spawn tornadoes, many more thunderstorms on Friday and Saturday will be capable of unleashing damaging winds, large hail, flash flooding and frequent lightning.

“While a single tornado hitting a populated area can have devastating effects on lives and property, remember you do not need a tornado to bring significant risks to the same,” warned AccuWeather.com Expert Senior Meteorologist Alex Sosnowski.