James Spann forecasts a big warm-up for Alabama after a cool start from Alabama NewsCenter on Vimeo.

CHILLY START: A very dry air mass continues to cover Alabama this morning; the sky is clear with temperatures in the 40s. Here are some temperatures just before daybreak:

• Fort Payne — 39
• Gadsden — 41
• Cullman — 41
• Hueytown — 42
• Weaver — 42
• Pell City — 43
• Scottsboro — 43
• Alexander City — 44
• Sylacauga — 44
• Decatur — 44
• Anniston — 45
• Bessemer — 45
• Birmingham — 46
• Demopolis — 46
• Montgomery — 49
• Mobile — 49

Mobile is 3 degrees away from the record low for May 1, 46 degrees, set in 1999.

We warm into the upper 70s today with sunshine in full supply, a delightful way to start the month of May. We stay dry over the weekend with a partly to mostly sunny sky Saturday and Sunday, and we will enjoy the warmest temperatures so far this year, with highs in the 83- to 86-degree range.

NEXT WEEK: Highs will remain in the 80s early in the week. A weak front will bring the chance of a few widely scattered showers to the northern third of the state Monday, but rain amounts will be light. Another front will bring a few showers Tuesday night or Wednesday morning, and then we will see cooler, drier air for the rest of the week, with highs in the 70s.

The pattern continues to look pretty dry for Alabama and the Deep South for the first half of May; output from global model ensembles suggest rain amounts only around 1 inch for much of the state. And there’s no sign of any severe weather issues for the next seven to 10 days.

DURING THIS MONTH IN 2003: A record-setting 516 tornadoes occurred during May 2003. In particular, during the period May 4-10, an unprecedented number of tornadoes, 393 total, affected the central and the southern United States. The tornadoes resulted in 39 deaths across four states. Six of these tornadoes were classified as violent (F4) on the Fujita Tornado Intensity Scale.

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