James Spann forecasts warm weather for Alabama this week from Alabama News Center on Vimeo.

WARM, DRY WEATHER CONTINUES: Temperatures will rise into the mid 80s across most of Alabama this afternoon with a partly to mostly sunny sky, the beginning of what should be the warmest week so far this year. Dry weather continues Tuesday with high clouds and a high between 80 and 85 degrees.

We will bring in the chance of a few showers Wednesday afternoon and evening over the northern third of the state (mainly from I-20 north), but the main dynamic support will be well to the north of Alabama, and rain amounts should be light and spotty. The day will be mostly cloudy with a high between 77 and 82 degrees.

Thursday looks like the warmest day this week, with upper 80s in many areas; the day should be dry with a mix of sun and clouds.

FRIDAY AND THE WEEKEND: A surface front will approach from the northwest, and we will bring in a chance of showers daily Friday through the weekend. Rain amounts should be generally less than one-half inch over these three days, and no individual day will be a washout, but occasional showers are likely. The high will be in the low 80s Friday, followed by upper 70s Saturday and upper 60s Sunday as cooler air drops into the Deep South.

There could be a rumble of thunder, but no risk of severe storms Friday through Sunday.

NEXT WEEK: Drier air returns, and much of next week looks dry with a warming trend. Highs will be in the 70s Monday and Tuesday, followed by low 80s over the latter half of the week. We see no high-impact weather event (flooding, severe storms, etc.) for Alabama for the next seven to 10 days.

RACE WEEKEND: The sky will be mostly cloudy at Talladega this weekend, and we have the risk of showers both days. This won’t be a washout, but rain delays are certainly possible for the races Saturday and the Geico 500 Sunday. The high will be between 75 and 79 degrees Saturday, followed by upper 60s Sunday.

ON THIS DATE IN 2011: The “forgotten” tornado outbreak saw 45 tornadoes touch down across Alabama.

One of the large EF-3 tornadoes to strike central Alabama created a swath of damage from northeastern Greene County, just southeast of the community of Ralph, to just south of Veterans Memorial Parkway in south-central Tuscaloosa County. Winds were estimated at 140 mph, mainly uprooting and snapping trees. A few homes and businesses were damaged as the twister moved north of Shelton State Community College and crossed Alabama Highway 69 near Taylorville.

Another large EF-3 tornado struck the Myrtlewood-Pinhook communities in Marengo County with estimated winds of 150 mph. Several dozen single-family and mobile homes were destroyed or severely damaged. One person was killed when his mobile home was tossed several hundred feet across Alabama Highway 69.

Another EF-3 tornado moved through the Boones Chapel community in northern Autauga County. This was the third one to affect the same general area for the day. Three people were killed and four were seriously injured as the tornado destroyed the manufactured home they were in. In all, at least 50 homes and one business were either destroyed or significantly damaged.

The event was forgotten by many due to what would happen 12 days later, on April 27, 2011, when a generational tornado outbreak would kill 252 people in Alabama.

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