3:30pm Friday Radar Check…Forecast Update
July 6, 2012 Leave a comment
Here’s a look at the 3:30pm Friday update. Scattered showers and storms are developing in spots across west and central Alabama. At this point, every storm is west of I-65. The best chance of storms this afternoon and evening will remain to the west of Birmingham and Clanton. I’ve drawn arrows on the map to show the general storm motions across the area. Strong to severe storms exists in Northwest Alabama, where a severe thunderstorm watch is in place until 9pm tonight. I expect most of that activity to move into east Mississippi by 5pm. Other spotty storms are getting strong, but they are below severe limits as of 330pm. Some of these storms could reach severe limits, due to the high level of instability and moisture.
The storms this afternoon are moving from northeast to southwest, which is a unique direction. Thanks to an upper air ridge northwest of Alabama, the flow is out of the northeast above the surface. This is steering the storms in that direction. You will want to look northeast of your area to see what’s coming your way. While there are only a few storms here and there on radar, I expect the coverage of storms to increase between now and sunset, then decrease shortly after sunset. Most if not all storms should die out by midnight. These storms will pop up in random areas and won’t last long at all. Look for lots of cloud to ground lightning with each storm this evening, so use caution if you’re outdoors. As for the threat of isolated severe storms, the main concern is from damaging winds and hail…
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Richard Scott
WVUA Chief Meteorologist
