North Alabama Weather Blog

Tornado Watch Until 7:00pm

The National Weather Service in Huntsville has issued a Tornado Watch for all of North Alabama this evening until 7:00pm.

Once again this Tornado Watch includes all counties in North Alabama tonight.

Tornadoes, thunderstorm wind gusts to 70mph, and dangerous lightning are possible in these areas.

Remember, a tornado watch means that conditions are favorable for the development of severe weather including tornadoes.

Check back for more updates throughout the afternoon and evening.

Another Tornado Warning

The National Weather Service in Birmingham has issued a Tornado Warning until Noon for…

- Central Blount County
This includes the cities of Cleveland and Blountsville

Law Enforcement reported a tornado on the ground near Allgood, or near Oneonta, moving northwest at 21mph.

The tornado will be near…
Fairview and Locust Fork by 11:45am CDT…
Nectar and Cleveland by 11:55am CDT…

The safest place to be during a tornado is in a basement. Get under a workbench or other piece of sturdy furniture. If no basement is available, seek shelter on the lowest floor of the building in an interior hallway or room such as a closet. Use blankets or pillows to cover your body and always stay away from windows.

Take cove immediately if you are in the path!

Check back for more updates…

Tornado Warning - Blount County

The National Weather Service in Birmingham has issued a Tornado Warning until 11:30am for…

-Southeast Blount County
This includes the city of Oneonta
- Central St. Clair County

National Weather Service Doppler Radar indicated a severe thunderstorm capable of producing a tornado 13 miles southeast of Allgood, or near Springville and Holly Springs, moving northeast at 25mph.

The tornado will be near Allgood, Highland Lake, Oneonta by 11:30am.

This includes Interstate 59 exit numbers 154 through 156.

The safest place to be during a tornado is in a basement. Seek shelter in the lowest level of the building, putting as many walls as possible between you and the outside.

Take cover now if you are in the path!

Check back for more information…

Tropical Depression Seven Forms

Tropical Depression Seven has formed in the Caribbean this morning. At the 10:00am advisory maximum sustained winds are near 35mph with higher gusts.

At 10:00am the center of Tropical Depression Seven was located 260 miles southeast of Port Au Prince, Haiti.

The depression is moving toward the northwest at 15mph. This could bring the depression to near southwest Haiti on Tuesday.

The depression could become a tropical storm later today.

Estimated minimum central pressure is 1006 millibars.

The next advisory will be issued by the National Hurricane Center at 4:00pm CDT.

Flash Flood Watch

The National Weather Service has posted a Flash Flood Watch for all of North Alabama through 7:00pm this evening as the remnants of Tropical Depression Fay bring heavy rains to the area this afternoon and evening.

Rainfall amount of up to 3 to 6 inches with locally higher amounts will be possible through this evening as large mass of rain, heavy at times, covers the state of Alabama.

A Tornado Watch is also in place for areas from the Birmingham area to the south. It looks like the main tornado threat will remain to our south, but an isolated tornado cannot be ruled out. Just check up on the weather throughout the day today.

A couple of tornado warnings are in effect of East Central Alabama, but nothing imminently threatening the North Alabama area however.

Also to note there are Flash Flood Warnings in effect for Shelby and Jefferson Counties. This includes the Birmingham metro area. Never drive your vehicle through water-covered roadways.

For the rest of the day across North Alabama you can expect rain showers, heavy at times. Winds could be gusty at times with some of the stronger rain bands. Look out for flooding problems, especially in low-lying areas that are prone to flooding.

Again, small isolated tornadoes are also a possibility, but mainly for areas over Central Alabama. But just keep an eye on the weather through the evening.

Check back for more updates…

Look At Weather Just Before Noon

At just before noon the area scattered light rain showers scattered across North Alabama. These showers are associated with the outer reaches of Tropical Storm Fay that is located along the Gulf Coast.

The latest update on Tropical Storm Fay from the National Hurricane Center indicates that the center of Fay is located along the coast of the Florida panhandle about 100 miles east-southeast of Pensacola, Florida.

Maximum sustained winds associated with Fay are near 45mph with higher gusts. Minimum central pressure was recently reported at 998 millibars.

Fay is expected to continue to track along the Gulf Coasts of the Florida panhandle, westward to the Alabama and Mississippi coasts and eventually into the coast of southeast Louisiana before curving back north into southern Mississippi late next week.

Potentially this could bring some significant rainfall to our area over the next several days. Exactly how much we will see is still uncertain, depending on the exact track of Tropical Storm Fay. Just check back for more updates on the developing situation.

But again right now, the heaviest rainfall associated with Fay is located over northeast Florida. There is also a tornado watch in effect there.

But here in Alabama there is just areas of light to moderate rainfall at times. A large mass of clouds also covers the state on this Saturday.

Check back for more updates over the next several days…

Just Isolated Storms, Watching Fay

The rest of the work-week looks dry across North Alabama with warm weather continuing. It looks like any storms that develop would be on Thursday and Friday afternoons, and any storms would be pretty isolated. Just not much of a chance of any one spot seeing a storm on those days. However, have to watch the progress of Tropical Storm Fay as it moves across the Florida peninsula, it could take a turn westward toward Alabama this weekend into early next week. This could bring a chance for some widespread rain around that time. BUT, there is still GREAT uncertainty with the exact track of Fay as it moves across the southeast United States. Just have to check back for more updates on the forecast. It would be nice for our drought situation to see some good rains around here though. So for the forecast details…

WEDNESDAY THROUGH FRIDAY
All three days look basically the same weather-wise. It will be seasonably hot with afternoon high temperatures reaching the mid to upper 80s. There could be some isolated thunderstorms develop during the afternoon hours as well. But isolated is the key word there, most places will remain dry. Morning lows each morning will be in the upper 60s to low 70s in most spots.

SATURDAY AND SUNDAY
Both days of the weekend looks dry right now, again it will be seasonably hot, but no excessive heat. Afternoon high temperatures will be in the upper 80s to near 90 both afternoons. Morning lows in the upper 60s to low 70s.

EARLY NEXT WEEK
As Tropical Storm Fay looks to curve back towards Alabama early next week, that could bring some heavy rainfall to our area. HOWEVER, remember the track of Fay is still very uncertain at this time. Just need to check back for more updates on this system. Fay will have weakened a great deal to a depression so we wouldn’t have to worry much about wind, heavy rainfall would be the main threat here. Just check back for more updates on that track of Fay.

FAY RIGHT NOW
Right now Tropical Storm Fay is inland over the Florida peninsula near the city of Moore Haven, Florida. It has produced wind gusts as high as 81mph recently over that area. There have also been multiple reports of tornadoes across the Florida peninsula. Maximum sustained winds with Fay are at 65mph right now with higher gusts. Minimum central pressure 989 mb. Forecast track takes it across the Florida peninsula, briefly into the Atlantic before re-curving into Georgia and Alabama.

Check back for more updates on the complicated weather forecast and track of Fay over the next few days.

Have a great day!

Dry and Warm, But Humidity Returns Late Week

The rest of the weekend looks dry for North Alabama, and that will continue into the beginning of the upcoming week. But by mid-week, and especially late week the humidity will begin to make a big return and along with that we will see a chance of some widely scattered pop-up thunderstorms during the afternoon hours. Those will be possible on Wednesday, heading into next weekend. So after a break from the humidity over the past week or so it looks like we will head back into a more typical summer-time weather pattern for our area. Tropical Storm Fay is also causing some havoc down in the Caribbean and could eventually have an impact on our weather next week if it makes landfall along the Gulf coast. So for the forecast details…

SUNDAY
Great looking Sunday expected across North Alabama. It will be warm with a mostly sunny sky. Afternoon high temperatures will be in the upper 80s to near 90 in most spots.

MONDAY AND TUESDAY
Looks like both days will be warm and dry with a mainly sunny sky with just some scattered clouds. Afternoon highs on both Monday and Tuesday afternoons will be in the low 90s for most spots. Morning low temperatures each morning will be in the mid 60s.

WEDNESDAY THROUGH FRIDAY
Each of these days looks basically the same right now. Afternoon highs each afternoon will be in the mid to upper 80s. Morning lows in the low 70s. With a good deal of humidity in place, there will be a daily chance for afternoon and evening pop-up showers and thunderstorms. HOWEVER, this forecast for these days could change if Tropical Storm Fay affects our area. Just have to wait and see on the forecast track of that tropical system.

TROPICAL STORM FAY
Tropical Storm Fay continues to move through the Caribbean near Cuba and Haiti. Depending on how much time Fay spends over land, she could become a formidable hurricane over the Gulf of Mexico. If Fay takes a track more toward South Florida, it won’t have much of a chance to strengthen, but if it crosses the length of the Gulf of Mexico and makes landfall along the northern Gulf coast it could be a dangerous situation. Check back for more updates on this system, definitely something to keep an eye on over the next several days.

Have a great weekend!

Update on Tropical Storm Fay

…Center of Tropical Storm Fay Moving Westward Between Cuba and Haiti…

At 1:00pm CDT the center of Tropical Storm Fay was located near latitude 19.2 north, longitude 74.9 west, or about 50 miles southeast of Guantanamo, Cuba.

Tropical Storm Fay is moving towards the west at near 16mph. A turn to the west-northwest is expected later today, followed by a turn to the northwest on Sunday.

Maximum sustained winds are near 45mph with higher gusts. Strengthening is forecast over the next couple of days and Fay could reach hurricane strength as it approaches central Cuba on Sunday.

Tropical storm force winds extend outward up to 105 miles from the center.

Estimated minimum central pressure is near 1007 millibars.

The next advisory will be issued by the National Hurricane Center at 4:00pm CDT.

Here is a look again at the forecast track for Tropical Storm Fay…

Tropical Storm Fay Forms…

Tropical Storm Fay has formed… The Sixth Tropical Storm of the 2008 Atlantic Hurricane Season…

Reports from NOAA and Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunter Aircraft indicate that Tropical Storm Fay formed as it moved into the eastern Dominican Republic.

At 5:00pm the center of Tropical Storm Fay was located 35 miles east of Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic, or about 395 miles southeast of Guantanamo, Cuba.

Tropical Storm Fay is moving west at near 14mph. This general motion is expected to continue, and on this track, Tropical Storm Fay will cross the island of Hispaniola tonight. Fay could affect eastern Cuba Saturday night and Sunday.

Maximum sustained winds are near 40mph, with higher gusts. Little change in strength is expected over the next 24 hours.

Tropical Storm force winds extend outward up to 85 miles from the center.

Estimated minimum central pressure is 1008 millibars, or 29.77 inches.

An Intermediate Advisory will be issued by the National Hurricane Center at 7:00pm CDT followed by the next complete advisory at 10:00pm CDT.

Here is a look at the five day forecast track for Tropical Storm Fay courtesy the National Hurricane Center in Miami, Florida…