The Long Dry Spell Continues

DRY OCTOBER DAYS: Today will be the 22nd consecutive day with no measurable rain in Birmingham (based on data from the airport), and not a drop of rain has fallen during the month of October so far. Drought conditions will worsen in coming days with a very dry pattern continuing.

We received this note from Coleen Vansant with the Alabama Forestry Commission…

“Right now Alabama currently has 27 active wildfires across the state. Twenty of those are in the north-one half of the state, from Bibb and Shelby across to Talladega, Clay and Randolph north to the Tennessee line. And from Mississippi to Georgia. In addition, we have already contained or controlled 22 in this same area today.

Aside from a few equipment use and power line fires, the two leading causes were arson and debris burning and they were almost even. We have been begging for the public’s cooperation for almost two weeks but apparently they are not getting how critical the problem is right now. Today and tomorrow we are under a Red Flag warning.

Firefighters are reporting very erratic fire behavior including fire whirls, fire in the tops of hardwood trees, and last night the humidity was so low at one point that our backfires were acting so erratic that we had to stop because it was not effective.”

PLEASE do not do any outdoor burning, and stop throwing cigarettes out the car window. Some of the fires have been very close to homes.

UPPER 30S THIS MORNING: Vic Bell, our Skywatcher at Black Creek (just northeast of Gadsden) reports 38 degrees early this morning… coolest so far this season. Cullman is down to 42.

We warm up nicely, however, with a high around 80 degrees for most places today with ample sunshine and very low humidity.

REST OF THE WEEK: Dry is the word. Sunny days, fair nights. We warm into the mid 80s by Thursday and Friday, but mornings will stay cool with lows generally in the 50s.

THE WEEKEND: No change. A clear sky Saturday and Sunday with highs in the 80s and lows mostly in the 50s.

FOOTBALL WEATHER: Clear for the high school games Friday night with temperatures falling from the low 70s at kickoff into the mid 60s by the fourth quarter.

Alabama will play at Tennessee in Knoxville Saturday afternoon (2:30p CT kickoff)… expect a partly sunny sky with a few widely scattered showers possible. About 78 at kickoff, falling to near 70 by the final whistle.

Auburn has the week off.

LONG RANGE: Still no sign of significant rain around here for the next ten days… next week looks generally dry as well with warm afternoons and cool nights.

TROPICS: Matthew fizzled out over the weekend and won’t be making any loops… the one system on the board is Tropical Storm Nicole in the Atlantic. It should become a hurricane within 36 hours, and will pass close to Bermuda Thursday. No threat to the U.S.

AT THE BEACH: Sunny days, fair nights this week from Gulf Shores to Panama City Beach with highs in the 80s. See a very detailed Gulf Coast forecast here.

WEATHER BRAINS: Don’t forget you can listen to our weekly 90 minute netcast anytime on the web, or on iTunes. This is the show all about weather featuring many familiar voices, including our meteorologists here at ABC 33/40. We will produce this week’s show tonight at 8:30p CT… you can watch it live here.

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Look for the next Weather Xtreme video here by 4:00 this afternoon… enjoy the day!

Tags: ANC, dry

Category: Alabama's Weather