Dry Weather Through Next Week; Here Comes The Heat

LATE MAY HEAT WAVE AHEAD: The sky is sunny across Alabama this afternoon with temperatures in the 80s; a strong upper high persists over the eastern third of the nation, and won’t be going anywhere anytime soon. Tonight will be clear with a low in the 60s.

The weather will remain dry over the weekend, and through all of next week as the ridge holds with sunny days and fair nights. Heat levels will continue to rise; the high tomorrow will be in the 87-90 degree range, and low 90s are likely Sunday. Then, mid 90s are a good possibility for much of next week, not far from record levels for late May in Alabama, and about ten degrees above average. See the Weather Xtreme video for maps, graphics, and more details.

TROPICS: Surface observations and recent satellite wind data indicate that a well-defined low pressure system over the western Gulf of Mexico has winds of 30-35 mph near and east of the center. The associated shower and thunderstorm activity remains limited, but any increase in this activity may result in the formation of a short-lived tropical depression or storm before the system moves inland over the northwestern Gulf coast tonight. Regardless of development, the system could produce heavy rainfall over portions of southeastern Texas and southwestern Louisiana through Saturday. Given the complete saturation of soils with ongoing river flooding along the Texas and Louisiana coastal areas, heavy rain could lead to flash, urban, and additional river flooding across this region.

And, in the Atlantic, showers and thunderstorms associated with a non-tropical low pressure area centered about 300 miles northeast of Bermuda have diminished somewhat over the past several hours, and the system has not yet acquired subtropical storm characteristics. However, the low is producing gale-force winds, and any increase in organization would result in advisories being initiated on the system later today or tonight as it moves westward to west-southwestward to the northeast of Bermuda. Subsequently, the low is forecast to move northeastward into a more hostile environment by tomorrow night or Sunday.

ON THIS DATE IN 1949: A violent tornado crossed the Mississippi River from the St. Louis area into Wood River, then to Roxanna. This tornado damaged or destroyed 300 homes in these two towns, killing five people. Four people died in a destroyed restaurant in Palestine, Illinois; one body was recovered from a tree. A tornado causing estimated F4 damage killed five people and injured 55 in St. Louis and St. Charles counties in Missouri and Madison County in Illinois. This tornado was part of an outbreak that produced four different tornadoes and was responsible for five deaths and 57 injuries.

ON THIS DATE IN 2001: Golfers participating in a golf tournament at the Majestic Golf Course in Hartland, Michigan received an urgent message on the G.P.S. on their carts. The message, relayed from the clubhouse, was that a tornado was bearing down on the course. Most of the golfers made it to safety in the clubhouse, although some had to take shelter on the course. Only one golfer suffered a minor injury. The F2 tornado damaged 70 cars in the parking lot along with numerous golf carts and a pontoon boat.

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