Severe storms shift to major East Coast cities Wednesday as 65 million threatened from Florida to New York

RALEIGH, N.C. – A powerful spring storm system is barreling toward the East Coast, placing over 65 million people from Florida to New York in the path of severe weather on Wednesday with threats of damaging wind gusts and strong tornadoes.The system, which is unleashing damaging winds and tornadoes across the South on Tuesday, is poised to continue packing a punch as it tracks eastward.HOW TO WATCH FOX WEATHERA gradual decrease in severe weather is expected Tuesday night as the storms congealed into a well-organized squall line. Strong winds and isolated tornadoes remain a concern, particularly along the Gulf Coast. However, this lull is expected to be short-lived as the squall line continues heading toward the Eastern Seaboard on Wednesday morning. The line of storms is expected to reintensify with daytime heating, posing a significant risk of straight-line winds across the Carolinas. A strong tornado is also possible, the FOX Forecast Center noted.The National Weather Service’s Storm Prediction Center has issued a level 3 out of 5 risk of severe thunderstorms for a critical zone encompassing parts of eastern South Carolina, eastern North Carolina and southeastern Virginia. DOWNLOAD THE FREE FOX WEATHER APPSpecifically, cities like Virginia Beach, Norfolk and Chesapeake in Virginia and Raleigh and Durham in North Carolina are in heightened danger as the storm system charges through the region.Aside from the tornado risk, there is high likelihood of extreme damaging wind gusts in excess of 75 mph – again including the Hampton Roads area in southeastern Virginia stretching through Raleigh and the Outer Banks of North Carolina and coastal South Carolina, including Charleston and Myrtle Beach. Other areas at risk of strong to severe storms include parts of Florida and eastern Georgia, as well as from western New York into the mid-Atlantic states.