STORMS LIKELY INLAND TODAY; STRONG STORMS SUNDAY NIGHT… Our active weather pattern continues on this Saturday with showers and thunderstorms likely at times throughout the day. Rain chances will be greatest today across inland counties, although there still could be isolated showers and storms at times closer to the coast. Could there be strong storms at times? Yes, but the low-end severe weather risk today will be because of the small potential of damaging wind gusts and small hail. The tornado risk TODAY remains near zero for the local area. That changes late on Sunday as another weather system approaches from the west. We’re also looking ahead to some nicer, drier weather starting Tuesday. Let’s look at details…
DENSE FOG ADVISORY THIS MORNING… Dense areas of fog are happening in many spots across the region this morning. Take it easy if you’re out on the roads this morning. Fog should gradually decrease in coverage over the next 2-3 hours.
WARM SATURDAY; STORMS POSSIBLE… Just like yesterday, you’ll need to have a way to check the radar throughout the day as showers and thunderstorms will be possible across south Alabama & northwest Florida. The coverage of showers and thunderstorms today will most likely be greatest along and north of the U.S. Highway 84 corridor, meaning communities like Thomasville, Monroeville, Evergreen, Beatrice, Owassa, Greenville, Georgiana, Camden, and Fulton have a slightly higher rain chance and slightly higher risk of seeing a strong storm later this afternoon. The concern in any of the storms that can ramp up to strong levels today will be damaging wind gusts. The tornado risk today remains very low. High temperatures today will be in the low-80s in most spots.
LEVEL 3 SEVERE WEATHER RISK TO OUR WEST TODAY… We note that parts of western Mississippi, northern Louisiana, southern Arkansas, and eastern Texas are involved in a Level 3 (out of 5) enhanced risk zone to potentially see a few severe storms capable of producing tornadoes and damaging wind today. If you’re traveling to those areas, be aware of the enhanced potential for hazardous weather.
COMPLEX FORECAST SUNDAY INTO MONDAY… There’s quite a bit of uncertainty that remains in the forecast as we go into Sunday and Monday. First, let’s talk about what we DO know. Sunday morning, temperatures will bottom out around 65 degrees in most spots. We quickly rise into the 70s for late Sunday morning with most spots being dry. There could be a few scattered rain showers that develop late Sunday morning into the early afternoon hours. By 3PM Sunday, most spots will be around 83° as warm, humid air continues streaming in from the Gulf of Mexico. Beyond that, forecast confidence Sunday evening remains LOW.
STRONG STORMS POSSIBLE SUNDAY NIGHT INTO MONDAY… The Storm Prediction Center includes much of west Alabama in their Level 1 (out of 5) marginal risk zone valid for Sunday evening into Monday morning. There could be a line of strong to severe storms approaching from our west during that timeframe, thus why we have a severe weather risk in place for parts of Washington, Clarke, and Choctaw counties in west Alabama. Instead, however, there could be a large complex of rain and storms approaching that would hinder severe weather development. We refer to this as a mesoscale convective system (MCS), which is similar to the system that moved through on Thursday that caused a lot of rain, some thunder, but no severe weather. Obviously these are two very different results that could produce very different outcomes. If we do end up seeing a line of storms approach, we could have damaging wind gusts and perhaps a few brief tornadoes involved. On the contrary, if a mass of rain moves in Sunday night into Monday, that would largely prevent any severe weather from happening. Regardless of which scenario pans out, rain will be likely Sunday night into Monday.
APP ALERTS… Now is the time to prepare for severe weather, just in case we happen to have a few tornado warnings on Sunday night into Monday. Once you have the RedZone Weather app downloaded to your iOS or Android device, be sure to visit the Alerts tab (lower right corner) then tap on the large, yellow “Alert Settings” button to customize the alerts you would like to get straight from me.
DRIER & WARMER WEATHER NEXT WEEK… Mostly sunny skies are expected Tuesday through Friday of the upcoming week. Get ready for the warmest temperatures of 2019 yet! High temperatures by Wednesday of the upcoming week could rise into the mid- to upper-80s. We’ll be in the 80s each afternoon from Tuesday to Friday. Overnight lows will be around the 60 degree mark.
I’ll have updates throughout the day as needed in the RedZone Weather app. Let me know if you have any weather-related questions. Have a great Saturday!