Dry Through Tomorrow; Rain/Storms Return Saturday

FROSTY START: Here are some temperatures across Alabama just before sunrise…

Black Creek 28
Fort Payne 28
Gadsden 29
Haleyville 29
Heflin 29
Weaver 31
Millport 31
Meridianville 31
Hueytown 32
Albertville 32
Scottsboro 32
Talladega 32
Pell City 32
Anniston 33
Decatur 33
Huntsville 34
Bessemer 34
Prattville 35
Demopolis 36
Birmingham 37
Tuscaloosa 38
Montgomery 42
Mobile 44

Look for a sunny sky today with a high in the mid 60s. We stay dry tomorrow… the sky will be partly sunny with a high in the upper 60s. Clouds increase tomorrow night.

SEVERE STORMS POSSIBLE SATURDAY: A dynamic weather system will bring occasional rain and thunderstorms to Alabama as the weekend begins. SPC has defined a “slight risk” (level 2/5) for areas along and south of a line from Tuscaloosa to Birmingham to Jacksonville, with a “marginal risk” (level 1/5) as far north as Cullman.

It looks like we will have two rounds of rain and storms. The first will come through during the early morning hours Saturday, in the general time frome from 3:00 a.m. until 11:00 a.m. These storms could produce strong winds and hail, and there is some risk of an isolated tornado or two. The main limiting factor is the lack of surface based instability… this hopefully will mitigate the threat to some degree.

After a midday lull, the air becomes unstable by afternoon, and additional showers and storms will likely form ahead of a cold front. These storms could produce large hail and strong straight line winds… the wind profiles become somewhere unidirectional by afternoon, so for now the tornado threat looks low with this round of storms.

Rain amounts of 1-2 inches are likely Saturday, and a few isolated flooding issues are possible. Most of the rain will be out of the state by 7:00 p.m. Saturday, and the sky clears Saturday night as dry air returns.

Sunday will be a dry day with ample sunshine along with a high in the mid 70s.

NEXT WEEK: The first half of the week will be warm and dry with mostly sunny days and fair nights… the high Monday will be around 80 degrees, followed by low to mid 80s Tuesday and Wednesday. The next weather system brings thunderstorms into the state Thursday; still too early to know if severe storms will be an issue, but it certainly is a possibility. See the Weather Xtreme video for maps, graphics, and more details.

RACE WEEKEND: Saturday will feature occasional rain and a few strong thunderstorms at Talladega… the high will be in the low to mid 70s. But, Sunday will be a picture perfect day for the running of the Geico 500 with lots of sun along with a high in the mid 70s.

ON THIS DATE IN 2003: Tropical Storm Ana became the first Atlantic tropical storm since records began in 1871 to form during the month April. Maximum sustained winds reached 55 mph. Starting as a non-tropical area of low pressure on the 18th about 210 miles south-southwest of Bermuda, it was classified as a sub-tropical storm early on the 20th, it gained full tropical characteristics near 0000 UTC on the 21st, developing an “eye” feature.

BEACH FORECAST: Click here to see the AlabamaWx Beach Forecast Center page.

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Look for the next Weather Xtreme video here by 3:00 this afternoon… enjoy the day!

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