CATEGORY 4 HURRICANE DORIAN NOW MOVING WEST-NORTHWESTWARD
The westward turn occurred during the overnight hours and is now moving to the west-northwest at 12 MPH toward and eventually just north of the southeastern and central Bahamas today, and over the northwestern Bahamas by Sunday. As of the 7:00 am update, maximum winds are clocking at 145 MPH. The latest track from the NHC shows the center of Dorian now curving right before making it to the east coast of Florida and moving just offshore to the north with a potential landfall around Hilton Head, South Carolina. While the forecast track doesn’t show a direct landfall on Florida, the peninsula is still located in the cone, which means that a Florida landfall is still possible.
As far as Central Alabama and the Alabama Gulf Coast, none of the spaghetti plots have Dorian staying well east of the Gulf of Mexico. While we may see a few clouds from the far western periphery of Dorian, winds will be out of the northeast and north starting on Tuesday and for the remainder of the week. As you will see, that will keep rain chances out of our forecast during that time, but it will not keep our daytime highs from getting into the lower to mid-90s.
MOISTURE LEVELS INCREASE IN THE SOUTHEASTERN PARTS OF THE AREA
While much of Central Alabama will stay dry throughout this last day of August, we may see a few isolated to scattered afternoon showers and thunderstorms over the southeastern parts of the area, especially along and south of the I-85 corridor. The reason for that will be the area of high pressure that has been nearby will become distorted and more of an easterly flow will start over the southeastern parts of the area. A convergence zone will set up over those locations which will be the focal point for the development of those showers and storms during the main heating of the day. Afternoon highs will be in the upper 80s to the lower 90s. Most activity will diminish after sunset, but a few showers could linger into the late-night hours. We should be completely dry before midnight.
WEATHER FOR THE FIRST DAY OF SEPTEMBER
The convergence boundary will move northward and end up around the I-59 corridor for Sunday, which will bring an increase of moisture levels along and south of that boundary. With the heating of the day, we’ll see a chance of a few isolated to scattered afternoon showers and storms along and south of the boundary, while north of that will stay dry. Afternoon highs will be in the upper 80s to the lower 90s.
A DRY & LESS HUMID LABOR DAY
A high-pressure ridge starts to build back in from the west which will send more continental-dry air into Central Alabama on Monday. The holiday will be mainly sunny with maybe a passing cloud or two with afternoon highs hitting the lower 90s. The good news is that dewpoints will be dropping throughout the day, into the mid-60s by late afternoon.
THE REST OF THE WORK WEEK
Based on the current track of Dorian, combined with the ridge continuing to be in control of our weather, we can expect a dry week with plenty of bright sunshine and very little in the way of passing clouds. Dewpoints look to stay in the lower to mid-60s throughout the week which will make the heat feel a little more tolerable. Highs on Tuesday through Thursday will be in the lower to mid-90s, with highs dropping back into the upper 80s to the lower 90s.
WEATHERREADY FEST: A FREE PREPAREDNESS & SAFETY FESTIVAL FOR THE ENTIRE FAMILY
The National Weather Association Foundation is bringing WeatherReady Fest to the campus of the University of Alabama in Huntsville on September 7, 2019, from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm. This one-day festival will include family-friendly games, fun learning activities, large response vehicles, and enlightening speakers. Local and national celebrities will make special appearances, along with the NWA’s very own, Owlie Skywarn. Over 6,000 attendees showed up in St. Louis for last year’s event… let’s break that record this year. Get your free timed tickets now as they are going fast. More information and a link to tickets are available on the festival website at www.weatherreadyfest.com. Hope to see you there!
Central Alabama Weather 