James Spann: Mild weekend ahead for Alabama with a few showers
SPRING-LIKE WEATHER CONTINUES: Temperatures are generally between 70 and 75 degrees across Alabama this afternoon; a few high clouds are moving through, but the low levels are dry and there is nothing on radar. Tonight will be mostly fair with a low between 45 and 55 degrees.
Mild weather continues over the weekend. We project afternoon highs in the low 70s, which is about 10 degrees above average for early December. Moisture levels will rise, and we will introduce the chance of a few isolated showers Saturday afternoon over north and west Alabama. The chance of any one spot getting wet is 15-25%, mainly in areas north and west of Birmingham. Otherwise, expect a partly sunny sky.
A few showers are possible Sunday as a weak disturbance moves across the state. The rain won’t be too widespread or heavy, but a passing shower is a distinct possibility. The sky will be occasionally cloudy, and clouds will thicken Sunday night ahead of a cold front.
NEXT WEEK: That front will bring rain to the state Monday, and possibly a thunderstorm or two. Severe storms are not expected, and temperatures will hold in the 60s. The front becomes stationary, and we will forecast occasional showers and a few storms on Tuesday and Wednesday. The weather then trends drier Thursday and Friday. Rain amounts for the week will be 1-2 inches, with isolated amounts to 3 inches.
FOOTBALL WEATHER: Saturday’s SEC Championship game between Alabama and Georgia will be played in Mercedes Stadium in Atlanta (3 p.m. CT kickoff). The day will be dry and mild; with a partly sunny sky temperatures will reach the low 70s by mid-afternoon.
ON THIS DATE IN 1983: The 1983 Iron Bowl game is one of the greatest in the history of the rivalry. It was played at Legion Field on Dec. 3. The game started in beautiful warm sunshine after a stormy night of very heavy rains that caused severe flooding in the Birmingham area, with 9.22 inches of rain falling at the National Weather Service Forecast Office on Oxmoor Road. If the amount had been recorded at the Airport, it would have stood as the all-time 24-hour rainfall record for the city until Hurricane Ivan. One person was killed by flooding in Bessemer.
During the third quarter, a line of severe thunderstorms was approaching western Jefferson County and a tornado warning was issued. The radar at Centreville showed a well-defined hook echo heading directly toward the stadium. The game was not stopped. By 10 minutes to go in the game, the rain was coming down in torrents as Auburn tried to control the ball and win the game in the horrible conditions clinging to a 23-20 lead. The rain began to fall so heavily that you could barely see the field on the cameras.
Fortunately, the storm did not produce a tornado in western Birmingham, or the results would have been catastrophic. Later, the same storm dropped an F3 tornado that heavily damaged the Winn-Dixie store at Sky City in Oxford, killing two people. A total of seven tornadoes touched down across the state that afternoon and evening.
Auburn went on to win the game 23-20.
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