TODAY: Ridging is still in control of our weather today, but we are now in a southwesterly flow and moisture levels will be increasing throughout the day today. We can expect mostly cloudy skies with scattered showers across the area, with the best chances over the northwestern parts of the area. A few locations in the south may have some thunder with these passing showers. Afternoon highs will be in the lower 70s to the lower 80s. Rain chances will become more likely for tonight and some thunder may be mixed in across the area, but no severe weather is expected.
SEVERE STORMS POSSIBLE ON WEDNESDAY: Wednesday will be a mostly cloudy day, with showers and thunderstorms developing during the afternoon and into the evening hours. A few of these storms may become strong to severe with the main threat of damaging wind gusts up to 60 mph, but there is a small risk of a brief tornado or two. Highs will be in the lower 70s to right around 80 degrees.
A Slight Risk for severe storms is up for most of North/Central Alabama, mainly north and west of a line from Hayneville (Lowndes Co.) to Wetumpka (Elmore Co.) to Wedowee (Randolph Co.), while the rest of the area has been placed in a Marginal Risk by the Storm Prediction Center.
Timing on this severe threat will be spread out from around 3 pm on Wednesday through all the night and overnight hours and will continue for the southern parts of the area after 6 am on Thursday as the front will struggle to move through the area and will eventually stall in the southern half of Central Alabama. So be sure to have fresh batteries in those weather radios and keep your mobile devices charged, and be ready to act if your location goes under a warning.
STRONG STORMS POSSIBLE AGAIN ON THURSDAY: Showers and thunderstorms will continue moving through the area on Thursday, and a few of those may become strong to severe. A Marginal Risk is up for the southern portions of the area, mainly along and south of a line from Linden (Marengo Co.) to Clanton (Chilton Co.) to Wedowee (Randolph Co.). Once again, the main risk will be from isolated damaging wind gusts up to 60 mph, with a much smaller risk of a brief tornado. Once the front passes your location, the threat will be over and the rain will begin to taper off. Skies will remain mostly cloudy, with highs in the 70s.
NO BREAK FROM THE RAIN ON FRIDAY: The front starts to retreat back to the north as a warm front on Friday that will keep showers and thunderstorms likely for much of the area. For now, there is no risk of severe weather for North/Central Alabama on the day 4 outlook, but I wouldn’t be surprised if we had a few storms with gusty winds. Highs will be in the 70s.
MORE SEVERE WEATHER POSSIBLE THIS WEEKEND: Our next threat of severe storms will come on Saturday, as a strong cold front will move into the area during the early afternoon hours and slowly progress across North/Central Alabama through the rest of the day and into the pre-dawn hours on Sunday morning. SPC has expanded the risk area to now include all of North/Central Alabama, except for the extreme southeastern locations. It looks like all modes of severe weather will be possible with this system as it will be the stronger of the two events, but we’ll need to get through this first system before we can focus on the details for the weekend. Much colder air will move in behind the front on Sunday, and we’ll get a chance to finally start to dry out. Saturday’s highs will be in the 70s, then dropping back into the upper 40s to the upper 60s across the area on Sunday.
Central Alabama Weather 