Archive for July 9th, 2012
The Thunderstorms Roll Along
Second radio update at 9:30 due to the large clusters of thunderstorms dumping very heavy rain, strong winds and almost continuous lightning.Thunder is window shaking. Strongest storms now extend from the east edge of Jefferson County and the east edge of Birmingham eastward across St. Clair and North Talladega County.
The lightning is almost continuous and the thunder window-shaking. The lightning has set off a number of fire alarms. A few roadways or streets were blocked by fallen trees in East Jefferson County.
The Greater Birmingham Area and most of Alabama will be getting a lot of rain and thunderstorms as the week goes on. The weather pattern is changing and the extreme heat is shifting to other areas. We may see as much as 2 to 3 inches of rain in this part of Alabama before the week is out.
Big, Mean Thunderstorms
A cluster of very strong thunderstorms, loaded with lightning, continues to advance northward across North Central Alabama this evening.
At 9:10 pm, the strongest thunderstorms were advancing northward through East Jefferson County and West St. Clair County.
Look for very strong winds, very dangerous lightning and downpours of rain.
The thunder is window-shaking. There are reports of flooding also, so please do slow down and drive carefully
These strong storms will continue to move northward. In the Trussville area the lightning and thunder is almost continuous and window-shaking.
Alabama is destined to get a lot more rain over the next several days, in fact several inches, and the heat will back off considerably.
Radar Check
Showers and a few thunderstorms, some of which have been heavy, continue to work their way from southwest to northeast across the area. Southern and eastern suburbs of the Birmingham metro have received some heavy rain this evening.
This complex of showers came out of the Gulf this morning and have slowly been propagating across the state producing beneficial rains all day.
The heaviest activity is along Interstate 20 between Birmingham and Atlanta.
These storms have been producing gusty winds, small hail, heavy rain and frequent cloud-to-ground lightning.
Active Storms Over Central/East Alabama
Storms are moving slowly to the east/northeast… and they remain below severe limits. But, the heavier storms are producing lots of lightning, and torrential rain, along with minor flooding issues. Scroll down for the forecast ideas for the rest of the week…
Quiet So Far Over North Alabama
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RADAR CHECK: While we have noted some big storms near the Alabama Gulf Coast, and up north near the Tennessee border, the radar is actually very quiet across North/Central Alabama this afternoon. Seems like an upper low west of Alabama is giving the best coverage of showers and storms today to areas west and south of here. Lots of heavy downpours over Mississippi this afternoon, where precipitable water values are also much higher.
Temperatures are pretty comfortable for mid-July; Tuscaloosa reports only 88 degrees at 2:00… Birmingham reports 90, while Anniston is up to 92.
THE DAYS AHEAD: Still no big change in our thinking. With a stalled surface front to the north and a weakness in the height fields above, we expect scattered to numerous showers and thunderstorms around here through mid-week with potential for beneficial rain. The guys at HPC suggest rain of 2-3 inches over North-Central Alabama through Saturday, with 4 inches possible up over the Tennessee Valley. Understand even under these circumstances the rain distribution very uneven due to the nature of summer showers and thunderstorms, but the cumulative rains should be very helpful in coming days.
Both the NAM and the GFS are forecasting highs in the 80s around here on Wednesday and Thursday. Not bad at all for the middle of July in Alabama.
WEEKEND PEEK: For now it looks like pretty routine summer weather around here Saturday and Sunday. Highs in the low 90s, a mix of sun and clouds each day with the chance of scattered showers and thunderstorms.
LONG RANGE: No sign of any runaway heat for Alabama and the Deep South for the rest of July as the core of the serious heat stays out west. Like I stated here a week ago, I sure get the idea the worst of the summer heat is behind us. Sure, it is always hot in July and August, but I seriously doubt we see the consistent triple digit heat like we saw at the end of June and the first of July. See the Weather Xtreme video for the details and graphics.
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I had a great time today visiting the kids at the Alabama Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Alabama out in Hueytown… be looking for them on the Pepsi KIDCAM today at 5:00 on ABC 33/40 News! The next Weather Xtreme video will be posted here by 7:00 a.m. tomorrow…
