Severe weather threat looms again Friday in Alabama
For the second time in about three days, Alabama faces a round of severe weather Friday.
The timing is significant. Friday is the one-year anniversary of the tornadoes that caused significant damage in Selma and killed seven people in Autauga County.
Expect Friday's storm to move through from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with the greatest risk being noon through the afternoon, forecasts from the National Weather Service office in Birmingham show. An area east of Interstate 65 and south of Interstate 20 is at an “enhanced” risk. That's a three-out-of-five danger level on a scale of one to five, with five being the greatest risk.
The danger area includes the cities of Anniston, Clanton, Selma, Camden to near Brewton, and areas east and south of those cities. Tornadoes, winds of up to 70 miles per hour and quarter-sized hail are possible.
Tuscaloosa and Gadsden are in an area of “slight” danger with a two-out-of-five risk. But don’t let the downgrade fool you. In that area, tornadoes, winds of up to 60 miles per hour and quarter-sized hail are possible.
Overnight Monday and into Tuesday morning, a system brought torrential rain and flash flooding to the River Region. A tornado Tuesday morning in the Castlewood community in Henry County resulted in the death of an 81-year-old woman whose mobile home was destroyed in the cyclone.
Friday won’t be like Monday, said Josh Johnson, chief meteorologist for WSFA.
“Friday’s system will be nothing like Monday’s system where the entire state saw heavy rains and gusty winds,” he said, “Friday will be hit and miss. There won’t be a line of thunderstorms come through. We will see individual thunderstorms form and move through.
“So, some cities will see no rain, and others may see severe weather.”
A look at the forecast shows how powerful the cold front will be.
Friday’s forecast for Montgomery calls for a morning low of 48 degrees with a high of 68; and a morning low Saturday of 31. The normal low for the Capital City this time of year is 36 and the normal high is 59, weather data shows.
Tuscaloosa will see a morning low Friday of 51 with a high of 65; dropping to a Saturday morning low of 29. For Gadsden, those numbers come in at 42 and 60 on Friday, falling to 26 Saturday.
“All the elements are there for possible tornadoes, the jet (stream), wind shear,” Johnson said. “It’s just a matter of how far north the humid air makes it.”
More: Deadly 2023 tornado reshaped lives in Autauga County
Winter time outbreaks of severe weather are becoming more common, he said.
“We always said there were two severe weather seasons in Alabama; March, April and May, and then November and December,” he said. “But the pattern has shifted. Now the severe weather season is November through May. It sounds crazy to be talking about tornadoes and the possibility of tornadoes on Christmas and New Year’s Day, but it is becoming more common.”
In fact on Christmas 2012 there was a widespread severe weather outbreak ahead of a powerful cold front which spawned tornadoes in east Texas, Mississippi, Alabama and the Florida Panhandle.
“It’s becoming less unusual, and in fact, there is an increase in cold season tornado outbreaks in the Deep South,” Johnson said.
After Friday, the Martin Luther King holiday weekend is shaping up to be sunny, but much cooler. Forecasts call for:
Montgomery
Saturday: Mostly sunny with a high of 50 and low of 30.
Sunday: Mostly sunny with a high of 56 and low of 35.
Monday: Partly cloudy with a 20 percent chance of rain. High of 51 and a low of 26.
Gadsden
Saturday: Mostly sunny with a high of 45 and low of 26.
Sunday: Mostly sunny with a high of 49 and low of 29.
Monday: Partly cloudy with a 20 percent chance of rain. High of 39 and a low of 19.
Tuscaloosa
Saturday: Mostly sunny with a high of 49 and low of 30.
Sunday: Mostly sunny with a high of 53 and low of 31.
Monday: Partly cloudy with a 20 percent chance of rain. High of 41 and a low of 20.
Contact Montgomery Advertiser reporter Marty Roney at mroney@gannett.com
This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Severe weather threat looms again Friday in Alabama
