Showers And Storms Blow In Late Tonight

| February 15, 2012 @ 2:54 pm

**No afternoon Weather Xtreme video today due to travel**

MILD AFTERNOON: As forecast, temperatures are much warmer across Alabama this afternoon. Birmingham is at 68 degrees at 2:00, which is the high we forecast today. We have a mix of sun and clouds, and the low levels remain fairly dry.

SHOWERS/STORMS ON THE WAY: Northwest of our state, a thunderstorm is in progress at Memphis, and rain and storms will move in here late tonight into tomorrow morning. Below is the SPC convective outlook for tonight, and they have trimmed the risk area even more since this morning.

With very little surface based instability and marginal dynamic support, the overall severe weather risk for Alabama will be low with this event. The main window for showers and storms will come from around midnight tonight through 9:00 a.m. tomorrow, and rain amounts of about 1/2 inch are likely, with isolated amounts to one inch.

We might see a little sun tomorrow afternoon after the storms move on to the east, and the day will be very mild with a high at or just over 70 degrees in most spots.

Friday still looks pleasant, with a partly sunny sky and a high in the mid 60s. Both the GFS and the NAM are printing a high of 65 degrees Friday afternoon.

OUR WEEKEND: A developing low in the northern Gulf of Mexico will bring rain back to Alabama over the weekend. The heaviest rain will be near the Gulf coast, where some spots could see two inches or more, but up this way amounts shield be between one-half to one inch.

Seems like the main window for rain will be from 6:00 a.m. Saturday through midnight Saturday night. The 12Z GFS is a little farther north with the surface low… hinting it could be a pretty good rain event for us, as well as South Alabama. While there could be some thunder, we don’t expect any risk of severe weather Saturday with the surface low to the south.

Sunday will feature a clearing sky, and we cool down a bit with a high in the low 50s.

NEXT WEEK: Monday and Tuesday look dry, but another round of rain and storms will blow in here late Tuesday night into Wednesday. You can see the morning Weather Xtreme video for more details and all of the graphics.

NEED HELP WITH YOUR WEATHER RADIO? We will be at the Publix on Highway 150 in Hoover, near Trace Crossings and Hunter Street Baptist, today from 3:30 until 7:00 p.m. We will be programming weather radio receivers at no cost… and if you need to buy one, they will be available at the Publix for under $30.00. Having a NOAA Weather Radio receiver is crucial for all Alabama homes, businesses, and churches.

STORM ALERT 2012: Our annual severe weather awareness tour across Alabama comes to Pleasant Grove High School tomorrow night; we will show some very powerful stories from the generational tornado outbreak of April 27, 2011, including a look at the EF-4 tornado that did so much damage in Pleasant Grove and Concord. This is the Birmingham metro show, so we expect a big crowd. We kick things off at 6:30… be sure and get there early for a good seat.

CENTER POINT TOWN HALL: We will be doing a special town hall meeting at Center Point High School Sunday evening at 5:00 on the severe weather warning process in Alabama. We encourage you to come out and learn more about how the warning system worked during the early morning hours of January 23 when an EF-3 tornado tore through Center Point and Clay, killing one person. This event will be carried live on ABC 33/40, and the question and answer session will be streamed live.

I had a wonderful time today visiting people at the Tuscaloosa Veteran’s Hospital… nice to be able to look many of these men and women in the face and thank them for their service to our nation. I am about to head down to the Publix on Highway 150 in Hoover for weather radio programming… look for the next Weather Xtreme video here by 7:00 a.m. tomorrow!

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Category: Alabama's Weather

About the Author ()

James Spann is one of the most recognized and trusted television meteorologists in the industry. He holds the AMS CCM designation and television seals from the AMS and NWA. He is a past winner of the Broadcast Meteorologist of the Year from both professional organizations.

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