James Spann has the Alabama forecast to close out August from Alabama NewsCenter on Vimeo.

AFTERNOON SHOWERS/STORMS: Rather unsettled weather will continue across Alabama today and Friday; the sky will be occasionally cloudy with scattered to numerous showers and thunderstorms, especially during the afternoon and evening hours. The chance of any one location seeing rain will be around 70 percent. Most of the showers and storms will come from noon until 10 p.m., but we can’t totally rule out a late-night or morning shower. Highs will be in the mid to upper 80s for most communities. The average high for Birmingham today is 89; the record is 100, set in 1995 and 1951.

THE ALABAMA WEEKEND: Not much change Saturday. There will be a limited amount of sun, and a few showers and storms are likely during the afternoon and evening; the high will be in the mid to upper 80s. But, on Sunday, showers and thunderstorms should become fewer in number as an upper ridge begins to strengthen. The sky will be partly sunny with a high around 90.

FOOTBALL WEATHER: For high school games tonight and Friday night, the weather will be warm and humid with the risk of a shower or thunderstorm, mainly during the first half. Some games could very well be dealing with a lightning delay; temperatures will be mostly in the upper 70s.

UAB kicks off the season with a Thursday night special tonight at Legion Field in Birmingham, hosting Savannah State (kickoff is at 7 p.m.). A passing shower or storm is very possible during the first half of the game; otherwise, look for a humid night with temperatures falling into the mid to upper 70s.

Saturday, Auburn takes on Washington in Atlanta in Mercedes Benz Stadium (2:30 p.m. Central kickoff). Outside the domed stadium, afternoon temperatures will be in the 87- to 90-degree range with the risk of a shower or thunderstorm.

Then, Saturday evening, Alabama will take on Louisville in Orlando (7 p.m. Central kickoff). The weather will be humid, and a shower or thunderstorm is possible during the game, mainly during the first half. The temperature will be in the low 80s at kickoff, falling into the upper 70s by the final whistle.

NEXT WEEK: The weather looks rather tame as the ridge remains parked over the region. Look for partly to mostly sunny days, fair nights and only isolated afternoon showers. Highs will be close to 90 degrees each day. There’s no sign of any really cool air for Alabama at least for the next seven to 10 days.

TROPICS: A tropical wave now coming off the coast of Africa has a good chance of developing into Tropical Storm Florence within the next few days. It will be gaining latitude, and there is a reasonable chance this one won’t affect the Caribbean or the U.S.

Global models continue to suggest other tropical waves will need to be watched as we get deeper into September.

ONE YEAR AGO TODAY: Tropical Storm Harvey made its third landfall on Aug. 30, 2017, at 4 a.m. about five miles west of Cameron, Louisiana (or 30 miles east-southeast of Port Arthur, Texas). Its maximum sustained wind speeds at this time were 45 mph. It continued to dump copious amounts of rain over southeast Texas and southwest Louisiana.

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