Southern Wisconsin is heading into a stretch of active weather that starts Friday afternoon and runs through Tuesday, with tonight, Sunday and Monday all marked as First Alert Days because of significant severe weather threats. Friday will start out sunny and breezy, with south winds gusting around 30 mph and temperatures climbing into the upper 70s to lower 80s.

The first round arrives Friday evening through early Saturday morning, when a complex of thunderstorms crosses southern Wisconsin. Large hail and damaging winds are the main concerns, especially west of Madison, where the strongest storms are expected. Those storms should weaken as they move east overnight, but they will still set the stage for another unsettled day.

Saturday brings only a brief break. Skies will turn partly sunny and temperatures will rise into the lower 80s, with dew points in the mid-50s keeping the air from feeling oppressive for a short time. Even so, another round of storms may develop Saturday evening, particularly along and south of Interstate 90.

Sunday is the next First Alert Day as a warm front lifts northward through the region. Showers and thunderstorms are expected during the afternoon and evening hours, and some of those storms could turn severe with hail and damaging winds the primary threats. That risk leads straight into what forecasters say may be the most significant severe weather day of the period.

Monday is also a First Alert Day, and a strong weather system moving through the region is expected to bring another round of storms during the afternoon and evening. The exact timing remains uncertain, but the setup supports severe thunderstorms capable of producing large hail, damaging winds and heavy rainfall. Some areas could see significant rain totals, especially from Sunday through Tuesday.

The main cold front finally pushes through southern Wisconsin on Tuesday, bringing one last chance for storms before cooler and drier air arrives on Wednesday. Temperatures will drop back into more comfortable levels to end the week, but residents are being urged to stay weather aware and have multiple ways to receive warnings over the next several days.