James Spann forecasts warming weather for Alabama before storms Friday night from Alabama News Center on Vimeo.

COLD START: We have some scattered light frost across north Alabama early this morning with temperatures in the 30s. Oneonta actually dipped below the freezing mark with 31 degrees just before daybreak. Look for a nice warm-up today with ample sunshine; the high will be in the 70s. Friday will be another dry, mild day, with a high between 77 and 80 degrees. South winds will increase during the afternoon ahead of an approaching storm system.

FRIDAY NIGHT: The Storm Prediction Center maintains an enhanced risk (level 3 out of 5) of severe thunderstorms for the northwest corner of Alabama around the Shoals. A slight risk (level 2) extends as far east as Gadsden, Hoover and Eutaw, and a marginal risk is defined as far south as Heflin, Clanton and Butler.

A line of thunderstorms will enter northwest Alabama around midnight Friday night, then progress southeastward through the early hours Saturday. The primary threat will come from strong, potentially damaging winds, but an isolated tornado can’t be ruled out. The highest tornado probabilities are northwest of Alabama, where a level a 4 moderate risk has been defined around Memphis.

While this system won’t pack the same punch as the one last Friday night, it is still very important to be able to hear warnings in the middle of the night as they are issued; the baseline is a NOAA Weather Radio. Be sure “Do Not Disturb” and “Sleep Mode” are disabled on your phone so you won’t miss any notifications.

Gradient winds will average 15-25 mph, with gusts to 30-35 mph possible in spots across north Alabama.

The weakening line of storms will shift into south Alabama Saturday morning and should be out of the state by early afternoon. Severe storms are not expected across south Alabama Saturday. For north and central Alabama, Saturday will be dry after the lingering early-morning showers with a partly sunny sky and a high between 75 and 80 degrees.

Sunday will be nice; with a sunny sky the high will be in the low to mid 70s.

NEXT WEEK: Moist air returns Monday along with a chance of showers and thunderstorms. The weather stays unsettled with some risk of showers and storms daily through Thursday; it’s too early to know whether severe storms will become an issue. Drier air returns Friday. Highs reach the mid 80s by Tuesday and Wednesday.ON THIS DATE IN 1805: New York’s City’s Battery Park was strewn with 24-inch snow rollers from a ferocious storm between March 26 and March 28. Snow rollers are natural snowballs that are formed when winds blow over a snow-covered surface.

ON THIS DATE IN 2022: Sixteen tornadoes touched down across Alabama. The strongest was an EF3 that moved from Perry County into the southwest corner of Shelby County, close to Montevallo. Two people were injured; tens of thousands of hardwood and softwood trees were snapped and uprooted along the tornado’s path during max intensity.

BEACH FORECAST: Click here to see the AlabamaWx Beach Forecast Center page.

For more weather news and information from James Spann and his team, visit AlabamaWx.