Friday Afternoon Forecast Discussion

The final of day of February turned out to be rather nice for us as temperatures made it into the 60s. Now rain is working into the coverage area and places like Fayette and Hamilton will see the shower activity first. Look for a band of light rain to slowly migrate southeast across the coverage area tonight. There could be a stray thundershower in the mix. This will be a lighter rain event and totals should only be in the 0.10” – 0.20” range.

Tomorrow the sky will grow mostly sunny, with highs in the afternoon reaching the 60s. The pleasant weekend weather will continue into Sunday, with highs near 70. Things will go downhill quickly on Monday as a powerful storm system will be dropping into the state.

You can expect highs near 70 on Monday will rain and thunderstorms likely. Some of the storms may grow severe, with a sharp cool down into the 40s Monday night. On Tuesday, very cold air will continue to drop in and there will be a chance for snow showers on Tuesday. Right now we don’t anticipate any problems with icy weather on Tuesday; however, our focus now is on the severe potential Monday. This vigorous storm system will be out of the picture by Wednesday and this should allow for a partly sunny day. Temperatures won’t have long to modify in advance of another storm system on Thursday. This system could also produce some rain or snow showers late in the week. Stay tuned!

Wes Wyatt
WVUA Weather

Thursday Afternoon Forecast Discussion

As we mentioned on Tuesday, we were up all night monitoring the weather Monday night as thunderstorms raced over the state. Here is a statement that was released from The National Weather Service: “Survey crews found a wide swath of 90 to 105 mph straight-line wind damage, with hundreds of trees and numerous power lines toppled, along with multiple structures… homes and businesses. The primary damage swath moved generally from west to east, starting in the southern portion of Metro Birmingham and continuing all the way to the Georgia state line. You can find the complete survey report by clicking here.”

A cold front is on the way and this will bring us the chance for a few showers tomorrow night. In the meantime, we will have lows cooling into the 30s tonight, with lows just above freezing. Tomorrow will be a day with cloudy periods, and then rain will arrive tomorrow night. The front that’s moving in will be weakening and I’m not expecting severe weather with this feature, but only a few rain showers. A rumble of thunder can’t be ruled out however, the activity will be moving out quickly with more sunshine on Saturday.

The weekend will be nice, but I’m afraid it’s going to come with a price as more active weather is expected on Monday. Both Saturday and Sunday will be partly to mostly sunny days, with highs nearing the 70-degree mark. On Monday a vigorous upper air storm system will be swinging over the southeast and this will bring us a chance of rain and heavy thunderstorms. Temperatures will plummet Monday night as an upper air low passes nearby. The dynamics with this system will likely set the stage for a period of snow or cold rain late Monday night and into Tuesday. The pattern will stay on the cold side through midweek, with another chance for rain or snow by next Thursday. Stay tuned!

Wes Wyatt
WVUA Weather

Wednesday Afternoon Forecast Discussion

We had several reports of snow flurries last night as really cold air dropped in. Even though we had lots of sunshine for today, it still felt quite chilly. The main factor that made today so uncomfortable was the north wind, which should lessen tonight. Days like today make you start looking forward to spring and I’m proud to report that the vernal equinox is only 21 days away.

Tonight we will have a clear sky, with overnight lows in the middle 20s. Tomorrow will mark the start of a warming trend, with a mild and sunny afternoon. We should stay above the freezing point tomorrow night as clouds will start filtering in. Friday will be a partly to mostly cloudy day and a cold front will drop into the state and bring a rain chance. This front will be loosing steam as it moves in so we’re not expecting any active weather. I’m expecting a band of rain or showers to move through the area between 10:00 p.m. Friday night and 4:00 a.m. on Saturday. The clouds will gradually break by Saturday afternoon, with a clear sky Saturday night. Since this front will be weakening, we really won’t take a bit hit temperature-wise. Highs will be in the 60s, with readings near 70-degrees on Sunday!

As temperatures warm we will be keeping our eye on a more impressive system for early next week. A cold front will drop in late Monday and this feature will bring us a round of rain and thunderstorms, with cooler air building in on Tuesday. It’s still way early in the game, but now it appears there could be some strong or severe thunderstorms Monday night. We don’t see the big upper air disturbance as was advertised earlier in the week. Therefore, we’ve backed off on mentioning a rain/snow mix and rather a warmer setup Monday. There will be a couple of good blasts of cold air next week, so don’t put away the jackets just yet!

Wes Wyatt
WVUA Weather

Much Colder/Watching For Snow Flurries

Last night we were on storm watch and now 24 hours later, we’re on flurry watch! I’ve been living here all my life and I can say that this is weather in Alabama. As we first mentioned yesterday, there will be the chance for some snow flurries tonight. That chance for seeing a few flakes is actually looking much better. Check out the large swath of precipitation dipping into north Alabama. This is the same area of precipitation we talked about during our earlier broadcasts and in the evening webcast. The higher terrain of northeast Alabama may see some light accumulations. We still have not set today’s low temperature. As of this posting time, our current temperature was 42-degrees, with a wind chill of 34. If we see any flurries around we will be sure to grab some shots for our 10:00 broadcast. Be sure to join us tonight and stay warm!

Wes Wyatt
WVUA Weather

Tuesday Afternoon Forecast Discussion

We reached our high temperature for the day during the early morning hours. This was in advance of a line of strong to severe thunderstorms. We didn’t have much active weather locally however, things really got rough for our friends in Birmingham and points east. A tornado warning was issued at one point and even one fatality was related to a downed tree on a home in Leeds. Now we’ve had a sharp return to winter time weather and tonight there could be a few snow flurries as temperatures dip into the 20s. There will be a greater chance of seeing a few snow flakes in areas northeast of Tuscaloosa.

Tomorrow the high temperature will be reaching the middle 40s and there will be a mostly clear sky overhead, so the sunshine should help with the cooler temperatures. It’s still going to feel chilly and a northwest breeze will be in place. Tomorrow night the right combination of light winds and clear skies will make for a decent freeze. By Friday we will recover into the 60s and there could be a shower as a cold front stalls nearby. The flow will remain quite mild and this weekend the daytime periods won’t be too bad. We will have highs in the middle to upper 60s, with a partly cloudy sky. Another storm system will drop in and bring a chance of rain and thunderstorms on Monday. Be sure to tune in tonight for more details!

Wes Wyatt
WVUA Weather

10:00 AM Weather Update

Good morning! We managed to get a few hours of sleep today; however, we were quite busy monitoring the weather overnight. The good news is that the severe weather threat is over. A couple of severe thunderstorm warnings were in place at one point and even neighboring Jefferson County went underneath a tornado warning at one point. Temperatures will be falling through the 50s today and by the afternoon it is going to be feeling quite cold as we will be dealing with 40s. As mentioned in yesterday’s forecast, there could be a few snow flurries as the low clouds linger later on. We managed to pick up 0.58” of rain last night and that puts us over the five inch mark. This is the first time we’ve had such a healthy monthly rain total in over a year! It’s still raining over southern portions of the area and this activity will gradually shift southward. Be sure to check in later today for the afternoon discussion and you can find our morning discussion on the main weather page.

Wes Wyatt
WVUA Weather

Severe Thunderstorm Warning Bibb County

The National Weather Service has cancelled the Tornado Warning for Jefferson County and line of storms has almost cleared Tuscaloosa County. Look for the threat of high winds to continue for communities like Moundville, Greenesboro, Gallion, Linden, Centreville, Brent, Clanton, Livingston, Ward, York, and Demopolis. The storms will continue to march southward.

 A Severe Thunderstorm warning was just issued for Bibb, Shelby, and Jefferson Counties. In these areas the winds could top 60 mph. This warning will last until 4:14 AM.

Tornado Warning Jefferson County!

We’ve gotten a couple of reports of high wind and rain in the City of Tuscaloosa. The storms continue to march southeast and winds will be gusting as high as 40 mph. The line has arced to the southeast, and this area will bring high wind gusts to Duncanville, Hulls, Moundville, and Centreville over the next 30 minutes. Also a tornado Warning was just issued for Jefferson County! Be sure to stay with your Home Team for the latest.

Wes Wyatt
WVUA Weather

3:20 AM SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR Jefferson County

  THIS INCLUDES THE CITIES OF…VESTAVIA HILLS…TRUSSVILLE…
  MOUNTAIN BROOK…MIDFIELD…LIPSCOMB…LEEDS…IRONDALE…
  HUEYTOWN…HOOVER…HOMEWOOD…GARDENDALE…FULTONDALE…
  FORESTDALE…FAIRFIELD…CENTER POINT…BRIGHTON…BIRMINGHAM
  AIRPORT…BIRMINGHAM…BESSEMER…

* UNTIL 400 AM CST

* AT 319 AM CST…NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  LINE OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING DAMAGING WINDS IN
  EXCESS OF 60 MPH.  THESE STORMS WERE LOCATED ALONG A LINE EXTENDING
  FROM KIMBERLY TO WELLER…OR ALONG A LINE EXTENDING FROM 8 MILES
  NORTH OF GARDENDALE TO 11 MILES SOUTHWEST OF HUEYTOWN…AND MOVING
  EAST AT 70 MPH.

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE NEAR…
  PALMERDALE…VESTAVIA HILLS…SHANNON AND PINSON-CLAY-CHALKVILLE BY
  330 AM CST…
  TRUSSVILLE…IRONDALE…CAHABA HEIGHTS AND ALTON BY 335 AM CST…
  LEEDS AND LITTLE CAHABA RIVER BELOW LEEDS BY 340 AM CST…

THIS IS A DANGEROUS STORM. IF YOU ARE IN ITS PATH…PREPARE
IMMEDIATELY FOR DAMAGING WINDS…DESTRUCTIVE HAIL…AND DEADLY CLOUD
TO GROUND LIGHTNING. PEOPLE OUTSIDE SHOULD MOVE TO A SHELTER…
PREFERABLY INSIDE A STRONG BUILDING BUT AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

…SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT FOR TUSCALOOSA COUNTY UNTIL 315 AM

AT 235 AM CST…NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR WAS TRACKING
STRONG THUNDERSTORMS ALONG A LINE EXTENDING FROM BANKSTON TO GORDO TO
ALICEVILLE…OR ALONG A LINE EXTENDING FROM 11 MILES SOUTHEAST OF
FAYETTE TO 10 MILES EAST OF REFORM TO ALICEVILLE…MOVING EAST AT 60
MPH.

WINDS UP TO 40 MPH ARE EXPECTED WITH THESE STORMS.

* LOCATIONS IN OR NEAR THE PATH INCLUDE…
  NEW LEXINGTON.
  ECHOLA.
  US GEOLOGICAL SURVEY WELL.
  WINDHAM SPRINGS.
  TUSCALOOSA MUNICIPAL AIRPORT.
  LAKE TUSCALOOSA.

A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 600 AM CST.