A Cold, Calm Day

An all new edition of the ABC 33/40 Weather Xtreme video is available in the player below, and on iTunes…

We have really gone through a severe weather drought in Alabama over the last five to six years; there have been a few exceptions, of course (like the March 1, 2007 Enterprise tornado), but generally speaking severe weather seasons have been rather benign around here. Looks like the severe weather drought is over, for sure.

It will be interesting to see the EF rating of the Prattville tornado; NWS survey teams will be out in full force today and we will report their findings here as soon as they are received. You can see aerial shots of the Prattville damage from our helicopter, Airlink 33/40, here; as you know we are the only station in the market with a helicopter and it really tells the story of this tornado better than any ground based live shot or report. Of course, over on the abc3340.com site you can also see the stories of damage in Chilton, Clay, and Dallas counties.

A COLD CHANGE: Much colder air blows into Alabama today; temperatures will go nowhere, and maybe even fall a few degrees this morning. Clouds now in place over North Alabama should slowly erode, and most folks should be in sunshine this afternoon. A freeze is likely tonight as temperatures drop down into the 20s.

REST OF THIS WEEK: A warm-up starts tomorrow afternoon as we rise into the 50s. Then, we head for the 60s on Wednesday with a partly sunny sky.

Wet weather returns on Thursday and Friday, and SPC has parts of Alabama under a severe weather risk on Friday as another short wave approaches within a powerful jet structure. The risk is for the southern half of the state, but I would not be surprised if this is pulled northward later. The good news is that another one to two inches of rain is likely on Thursday and Friday.

WEEKEND PEEK: Model madness is the story; the 06Z GFS suggests a dry weekend for Alabama, but the European tells a different story, with a cold front on Sunday and a chance of showers and storms. Previous GFS runs have also looked unsettled for the weekend; J.B. wrote the morning forecast package for today and has mentioned a chance of rain for the weekend. We will fine tune the forecast as we go along this week… needless to say…

LONG RANGE: Pretty much the same story; active and changeable. No sense in trying to pin down specific systems far in advance.

WEATHER BRAINS: Don’t forget you can listen to our weekly 30 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. You can even listen here on the blog; look for the player on the top left. We will record a new show tonight; it will be posted by 10:00 or so.

STORM ALERT 2008: This week we come to Clay County… we will be at Lineville High School Thursday at 7:00; the doors open at 5:00. We hope to see you there; be sure and come early for a good seat!

Look for the next Weather Xtreme video here by 3:30 this afternoon… have a wonderful Monday!

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