James Spann: Clearing, cooler weather for Alabama today
James Spann forecasts a cool conclusion for the Alabama work week from Alabama NewsCenter on Vimeo.
CALMER DAY: A cold front is pushing through far south Alabama early this morning; it will bring colder air down into the state today with a clearing sky. Despite sunshine this afternoon, most places north of Birmingham won’t get out of the 40s. The average high for Birmingham on Feb. 18 is 60. Tonight will be clear and cold; temperatures will drop into the upper 20s by daybreak Saturday.
The weekend will feature sunny days with a warming trend. The high will be in the upper 50s Saturday, followed by low 60s Sunday.
NEXT WEEK: A very wet period is likely for much of next week for Alabama and the Deep South. A northward-moving warm front will bring rain into the state Monday. By Tuesday, the front should be near the Tennessee state line, and temperatures will rise into the 70s across Alabama with showers possible; the heaviest rain Tuesday should be north of the front across parts of Arkansas and Tennessee. Mild, showery weather continues Wednesday and Thursday, and then a cold front will bring a chance of stronger storms into the state Thursday night. It’s too early to know whether this will be a severe weather setup.
Some guidance suggests rain amounts will be around 5 inches next week across the Tennessee Valley of far north Alabama, with around 3 inches for places like Tuscaloosa, Birmingham, Anniston and Gadsden. There could be some flooding.
STORM SURVEYS: National Weather Service Birmingham is sending survey teams into the field today to review damage around Boley Springs in Fayette County, Graysville in Jefferson and along Alabama 119 from Greystone to Leeds. We will know later today how many tornadoes touched down and their rating.
ON THIS DATE IN 1992: A thunderstorm spawned a powerful F4 tornado for so far north for the time of the year in southern Van Wert County in Ohio. The tornado touched down just west of U.S. Route 127 and traveled northeastward for about 3 miles. One house was leveled and nine others experienced severe damage. Six people were injured.
ON THIS DATE IN 2021: Cold arctic air covered Alabama and snow amounts of 2-5 inches were common across counties like Madison, Limestone, Morgan, Lauderdale, Colbert, Lawrence, Marion and Winston.
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