Today is Fall Severe Awareness Day

As you know in Central Alabama, our primary severe weather season is in the Spring during the months of March, April, and May. Most people do not realize that we also have a secondary severe weather season in the Fall, which typically runs during the months of November and December. Sometimes we are fortunate to experience a quiet season where there is little to no severe activity, but we may also see our fair share of destructive tornadoes and other severe events. During the last 66 years (from 1950 to 2015), the state of Alabama had at least one documented tornado in the month of November or December in 46 of those years, which equates to 70%.

Just within the last 14 years, 21% (175) of all documented tornadoes (822) occurred during November and December. In that same period, 6% (18) of the tornado-related fatalities (283), and 10% (262) of the tornado-related injuries (2730) occurred in November and December. If you remove the number of fatalities from just April 27, 2011, the percentage of deaths that occurred during November and December is around 40%.

These statistics are not used to bring you fear, but does show the need to be prepared for the Fall Severe Weather Season. Your preparation can make a difference between life and death. Here are some important tips:

• Now is the time to check your emergency supplies and to make sure your NOAA Weather Radio, other portable radio, and flashlights have fresh batteries.
• Regardless of the strength, ALL tornadoes should be considered dangerous and capable of producing damage and injuries.
• Treat a Severe Thunderstorm Warning the same as you would a Tornado Warning. Most storm-related damage occurs with severe thunderstorm winds.

For more information, the NWS Birmingham has a great page dedicated to Fall Severe Weather Awareness. You can find it by clicking here.

Category: Alabama's Weather, Met 101/Weather History