James Spann: A few scattered showers, storms for Alabama over the weekend
RADAR CHECK: There is no rain on radar across Alabama this afternoon; the sky is partly to mostly sunny with temperatures in the low 80s in most places. Tonight will be mostly fair with a low in the 60s.
Saturday will be another warm day with a mix of sun and clouds. A few isolated showers or storms will likely pop up during the afternoon and evening, but odds of any one spot getting wet are only 10-20%; most places will stay dry. The high will be between 81 and 85 degrees. On Sunday, we will see an increase in the number of showers and storms as a weakening front approaches the northern part of the state, but the showers will still be random and scattered. Some places won’t see any rain; the chance of any one spot getting wet Sunday is 40-50%. Higher probabilities will be over the northern third of the state. The sky will be occasionally cloudy with a high at or just over 80 degrees.
Bottom line: The weekend won’t be a washout, but a few showers will be around.
NEXT WEEK: An upper ridge will hold, keeping all of the severe weather threats well to the north and west of Alabama through the week. A few scattered showers will be possible daily; for now it looks like the higher coverage of showers and storms will come Wednesday, and then again Friday as surface fronts approach. Much of south Alabama will be dry during the week thanks to the ridge aloft. Highs will be mostly in the 80s, lows in the 60s.
RACE WEEKEND: The 2022 Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama is Sunday at Barber Motorsports Park. The sky will be occasionally cloudy and a brief passing shower is possible, but most of the afternoon will be dry. Temperatures will be close to 80 degrees during the race.
FOOTBALL WEATHER: The Birmingham Stallions will host the New Orleans Breakers Saturday at Protective Stadium (7 p.m. kickoff). There’s just a small risk of a shower during the game; otherwise the sky will be mostly fair with temperatures falling from near 80 at kickoff into the mid 70s by the final whistle.
ON THIS DATE IN 1910: The temperature at Kansas City, Missouri, soared to 95 degrees to establish a record for April. Four days earlier the afternoon high in Kansas City had been 44 degrees following a record cold morning low of 34 degrees.
ON THIS DATE IN 1991: Southeast Bangladesh was devastated by a late-night tropical cyclone with sustained winds of approximately 155 mph. A 20-foot storm surge inundated the offshore islands south of Chittagong and pushed water from the Bay of Bengal inland for miles. The loss of life from this cyclone was estimated between 135,000 and 145,000 people.
ON THIS DATE IN 2014: An EF-1 tornado touched down in Sardis City (northern Etowah County) before dawn. The tornado was at its peak intensity along Mountainboro Road between Shady Grove Road and Lawson Gap Road, with maximum winds between 90 and 100 mph.
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