Published On: 01.30.25 | 

By: James Spann

James Spann: Rain arrives in Alabama late tonight; very nice weekend ahead

WARMEST DAY SO FAR THIS YEAR: Temperatures are in the low to mid 70s across much of Alabama this afternoon, and for most communities this is the warmest day so far this year. Birmingham’s high so far is 73 degrees, easily beating the 68-degree maximum we enjoyed on Jan. 18 but below the record high for Jan. 30 — 78, set in 1950. The warmest spot at midafternoon is Montgomery, with 76 degrees.

Clouds will increase tonight ahead of an upper trough.

A cold front will push an organized band of showers and possibly a thunderstorm into the state late tonight into the day Friday. With little to no surface-based instability, most of Alabama will not have an issue with severe storms, but the Storm Prediction Center maintains a marginal risk (level 1 of 5) for the far southern part of the state.

Heavier storms over extreme south Alabama Friday could produce gusty winds, but most storms will remain below severe limits there with instability very limited. As the upper trough swings through, additional showers will likely develop over north Alabama Friday afternoon and evening. Those should be out of the state by 9-10 p.m. The high will be in the 60s for most places.

THE ALABAMA WEEKEND: It will be the warmest weekend so far this year with mostly sunny, mild days and fair nights. Highs will be in the 60s Saturday, followed by upper 60s and low 70s Sunday.

NEXT WEEK: Models continue to trend warmer; highs will be in the 70s through the week, and some daily record highs could be in danger. The weather will be dry; then we gradually phase in some risk of scattered showers through midweek. The most widespread rain will likely come at the end of the week with the approach of a cold front. Global models are giving evidence of cooler air returning to the state around Feb. 8-9, but not in the form of an Arctic blast.

ON THIS DATE IN 1966: The Blizzard of 1966 affected New York and paralyzed the region. The train service was disrupted. Numerous highways, the New York State Thruway from Albany to the Pennsylvania state line, and the Buffalo Airport and other airports throughout western and central New York were closed. The Syracuse-Oswego area was hardest hit, where Bob Sykes, a meteorology professor at the State University of New York at Oswego, reported a whopping 102.4 inches.

ON THIS DATE IN 2013: In the morning, a strong storm system moved across the lower Mississippi River and Tennessee River Valleys. This system not only produced a long-lived squall line but also discrete supercells out ahead of the line. As the storms crossed into Alabama that morning, these thunderstorms caused five tornadoes over the northern counties, two areas of significant straight-line wind damage and isolated flash and areal flooding. In addition to the severe weather, widespread reports of downed trees caused by pressure-gradient winds were received throughout the day.

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