Alabama 811 | Know What's Below.

Hurry! Go Check Your Barometer!

| January 22, 2017 @ 5:00 pm

After a cold Saturday and Saturday night that never saw the mercury go above freezing for much of the area, the ol’ thermometer is making slow but steady progress today.

At the surface, the big blob of high pressure (top left panel) extends from a center over western Kentucky down into Mississippi, Louisiana and Alabama. At the center of the high, the barometer is well over 1040 mb, because right now, barometers adjusted to sea level are reading over 30.75 inches or 1041 mb.

You won’t see your home barometer that high around these parts very often.

Aloft, a huge trough is along the East Coast. Northwesterly winds on the back side of that trough are bringing some high clouds into the state, that are dulling the sun and slowing the melting process.

Roads that were ice covered or slushy overnight are slowly improving, but still slick in spots. Shady areas will be the worst. Heard reports of major problems still on Clairmont on Birmingham’s Southside and Overtone Road to the east.

A wreck on I-65 SB just south of Lakeshore has the southbound lanes backed up for over a mile. You may want to avoid that area. That accident may have been ice related.

280 East out of Downtown is still very slow and US-31 coming up or down the hill by Brookwood Hospital is still a mess. US-78 is problematic from Avondale to Oporto.

I-20/59 to Tuscaloosa is in great shape according to reports, but I-20/59 through downtown is a mess.

459 appears to be in good shape except southbound in the big curve near Liberty Park.

Roads are open but please use EXTREME caution. And just stay home if you can.

Category: Severe Weather

About the Author ()

Bill Murray is the President of The Weather Factory. He is the site's official weather historian and a weekend forecaster. He also anchors the site's severe weather coverage. Bill Murray is the proud holder of National Weather Association Digital Seal #0001 @wxhistorian

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