Archive for July 30th, 2012
Storms Developing Rapidly in Birmingham Area
Showers and storms are developing rapidly in the Birmingham area right now. Lots of sharp lightning.
Cells are near Trussville/Moody, in the Morris/Kimberly area, south of Locust Fork and near Springville.
They are also strong in the Cullman area.
Everything is moving southeast.
Storms will continue to develop overnight along a weak frontal zone over the area.
A severe thunderstorm warning was just issued for Marion County. A strong risk of wind damage with the storm moving into northern Marion County.
Severe Thunderstorm Warning: Parts of Marion County
Intense storms will reach northern Marion County before 12:30 a.m.
These storms have a high potential for producing wind damage and hail to the size of ping pong balls.
Lots of deadly lightning and torrential rain as well.
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BIRMINGHAM HAS ISSUED A
* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR…
MARION COUNTY IN NORTHWEST ALABAMA…
* UNTIL 115 AM CDT
* AT 1155 PM CDT…THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE INDICATED A LINE OF
SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING QUARTER SIZE HAIL…AND
DESTRUCTIVE WINDS IN EXCESS OF 70 MPH. THESE STORMS WERE LOCATED
ALONG A LINE EXTENDING FROM 12 MILES WEST OF RUSSELLVILLE TO RED
BAY TO FAIRVIEW…AND MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 40 MPH.
* LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE…
HAMILTON…WINFIELD…HACKLEBURG…WESTON…BRINN…LAKE
BUTTAHATCHEE…BRILLIANT AND GUIN.
THIS INCLUDES…
US 78 EXIT NUMBERS 3 THROUGH 34…
Heads Up Franklin, Marion, Winston
To our friends in Marion, Winston and Franklin Counties between now and 1 a.m.
Those are two nasty storms in northeastern Mississippi late tonight and they are tracking toward Northwest Alabama. And they seem to be getting stronger.
Severe thunderstorm warnings are in effect now in northeastern Mississippi. A slight risk severe weather outlook is in effect for virtually all of Alabama overnight.
The storms will reach Franklin County before midnight and Marion and Winston Counties before 1 a.m.
They could reach I-59 from Tuscaloosa perhaps to Birmingham by 3-4 a.m.
Damaging winds will be the main threat although there will be some large hail too.
Additional storms were developing further upstream and we could also deal with those through the early morning hours.
Don’t forget the torrential rains and deadly lightning as well.
Late Night Notes
This graphic refers to several of the elements discussed in this post. Click the image to enlarge and study some of them. See how many you can find. Kind of a “hidden pictures puzzle” game like we used to enjoy in the Highlights magazines at the doctor’s office growing up.
You may have noticed that the SPC has at least part of all 67 Alabama counties in a slight risk severe weather outlook for the rest of the night. You might think that strange, but they have a reason.
Looking upstream, we see lots of showers and storms over western Tennessee and southeastern Missouri. I say upstream, because our upper level flow, which dictates where our weather will come from, is out of the northwest.
It is forming along a moisture and temperature boundary that extends northwest to southeast just to the north of the US-78 corridor. This activity will push into Northwest Alabama overnight.
There is still quite a bit of instability over eastern Mississippi and the northern half of Alabama tonight. And there is some decent shear as well. So there is a chance that the storms will intensify as they push into northeastern Mississippi and northwestern Alabama later.
So, after midnight, we may deal with some severe thunderstorms that will travel down the length of the state during the morning hours.
There is not good consensus among the short term models, so we will just have to see how it unfolds. The forecast is very low confidence. But we will be watching it right here. Set your Weatheradios and weather apps to alert you during the night in case any watches or warnings get issued. The threat will be from damaging wind gusts.
Pike County: Flash Flood Warning
5-10 inches of rain has fallen across southern Pike County in South Alabama south of Troy tonight.
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BIRMINGHAM HAS ISSUED A
* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR…
SOUTH CENTRAL PIKE COUNTY IN SOUTHEAST ALABAMA…
* UNTIL 1100 PM CDT
* AT 811 PM CDT…NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE INDICATED SUCCESSIVE
THUNDERSTORMS WITH VERY HEAVY RAINFALL ACROSS THE WARNED AREA. MORE
THAN 5 INCHES OF RAIN HAS LIKELY FALLEN IN THIS AREA SINCE 5 PM.
