Forecast Scorecard

Been very busy tonight with radio/TV work, but I was told the trolls and haters were on us tonight here on the blog about the winter storm impacting Alabama tonight and our forecast.

For a review… here is our final forecast graphic on the storm, issued early this morning:

Quite frankly, with our lack of skill in identifying the line between ice and snow, I am not sure we could have done much better. The 3-7 inch snows will verify nicely north of that red line, and to the south it was mostly ice (freezing rain and sleet). There have been hundreds of accidents today and tonight through the northern half of the state, and at least two people have died as as result. The northern half of the state is pretty much shut down tonight, and it will be through at least tomorrow morning (and maybe longer).

The biggest issue is that we should have hit the snow totals to the north a little higher. I see the NWS in Huntsville has upped their snow projection for the Tennessee Valley to 8 to 12 inches! And, the middle red line should have been about 25 miles to the north. As stated here often in recent days, defining that line was the hardest part, and to get it with 25 miles is about the best I can do. Maybe some of the critics can do better next time… I welcome them to give it a shot.

I have widespread reports of 3-7 inches across Marion, Fayette, Winston, Cullman, Blount, Etowah, Cherokee, Calhoun, St. Clair, and the northern half of Jefferson and Tuscaloosa Counties. I-20 indeed was pretty much the best snow-ice line for this event, with a few exceptions. Scroll down for hundreds of images from the storm, and please DON’T DRIVE tonight or tomorrow morning.

And, the trolls don’t really bother us. Some of us that have been doing this for 25 years or more have a pretty thick skin. Otherwise, you would never survive forecasting weather in Alabama…

Tags: forecast

Category: Alabama's Weather, Winter Weather