RADAR CHECK: Strong thunderstorms are pushing through west-central Alabama at midafternoon; they are under severe limits but are producing heavy rain, gusty winds and lots of lightning. Those storms will continue pushing into the southern half of the state over the next few hours.

There is a wide range of temperatures across the state; north Alabama communities are in the 70s and 80s thanks to clouds and rain, while the southern counties are in the 90s.

THE ALABAMA WEEKEND: We are looking at fairly routine summer weather Saturday and Sunday — mixed sun and clouds both days with a few scattered, mostly afternoon and evening showers and thunderstorms. The chance of any one spot getting wet both days is 30-40%, and highs will be in the low 90s.

NEXT WEEK: The heat ridge will remain west of Alabama, and our weather won’t change much. Look for partly sunny days, scattered, mostly afternoon and evening showers and storms, and highs between 88 and 93 degrees through the week.

MORNING RAIN TOTALS: Excessive rain fell across parts of Blount and St. Clair counties early this morning with significant flooding. A few totals:

• Springville (actually 6.5 miles northeast of Springville) — 7.61 inches
• Oneonta — 7.45 inches
• Cropwell — 4.88 inches

TROPICS: Tropical storm formation is not expected at least for the next seven days across the Atlantic basin as the remarkably quiet pattern continues.

ON THIS DATE IN 2008: Severe storms moved across northern Illinois and Indiana with tornadoes and strong winds. With tornado sirens blaring, the game at Wrigley Field between Cubs and Astros was stopped as fans were told to evacuate to the lower concourse. Passengers at O’Hare International Airport were evacuated to lower levels of buildings as well.

ON THIS DATE IN 2009: The strongest tornado to hit Quebec since the same date in 1994 ripped through Mont-Laurier. The F2 tornado tore through the small western Quebec town, severely damaging about 40 homes.

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