Scott Martin is an operational meteorologist, professional graphic artist, musician, husband, and father. Not only is Scott a member of the National Weather Association, but he is also the Central Alabama Chapter of the NWA president. Scott is also the co-founder of Racecast Weather, which provides forecasts for many racing series across the USA. He also supplies forecasts for the BassMaster Elite Series events including the BassMaster Classic.
Zeta is forecast to be at or near hurricane strength when it approaches the northern Gulf Coast on Wednesday, and there is an increasing risk of storm surge, rainfall, and wind impacts from Louisiana to the Florida Panhandle.
On the forecast track, the center of the depression is anticipated to remain south of Cuba tomorrow and approach the Yucatan Channel or Yucatan Peninsula late Monday before emerging into the southern Gulf of Mexico on Tuesday.
The latest Tropical Weather Outlook was just released by the NHC and it states that Invest 95L continues to get better organized and a tropical depression will be likely by this afternoon or evening if the trends continue.
Showers and thunderstorms can be expected through the day today as a cold front moves through the area, while Sunday will be dry with mostly cloudy skies. We’re also watching a disturbance in the tropics that has the potential to bring more rain to the area during the workweek.
At 4:48 am, we have a good bit of shower and thunderstorm activity mainly along and west of the I-59 corridor as the cold front is making its way across the northwestern part of North/Central Alabama.
As of 8:10 pm, we have a batch of hefty thunderstorms over the extreme northwestern parts of Central Alabama and into the western parts of North Alabama.
Satellite images and radar data indicate that the broad area of low pressure located just west of Grand Cayman Island is gradually becoming better defined.
At 250 PM CDT, Doppler radar was tracking a strong thunderstorm over Trinity, moving east at 20 mph.
At 228 PM CDT, Doppler radar was tracking a strong thunderstorm near Athens, moving east at 10 mph.
At 153 PM CDT, a severe thunderstorm was located 7 miles east of Rogersville, moving east at 10 mph.
Much of Central Alabama has a good bit of sunshine while a few locations in the eastern parts of the area have some clouds blocking out some of those rays.
Winds at Bermuda will subside overnight. Large swells generated by Epsilon will affect Bermuda, the Bahamas, the Greater Antilles, the Leeward Islands, the east coast of the United States, and Atlantic Canada during the next few days. These swells are likely to cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions.
James Spann
@spann
