RAIN & STORMS ON WEDNESDAY; DRY FOR THANKSGIVING DAY… Mostly sunny skies are in the forecast for today and Tuesday but we’re looking ahead to Wednesday when rain and thunderstorms will be possible across south Alabama and northwest Florida. Stronger storms will be more likely to happen to our north on Wednesday across parts of north Alabama and Tennessee, but an isolated strong or severe storm cannot completely be ruled out locally, especially across inland counties. The main risk in any storms that can ramp up to stronger levels will be from damaging straight line winds. The tornado risk with this passing system on Wednesday remains very low. The good news is rain and storms will likely clear out Wednesday evening, meaning Thanksgiving Day should be dry and mild. High temperatures will remain in the 70s for the entirety of this week. A few Monday forecast notes are below.

MOSTLY SUNNY TODAY AND ON TUESDAY… Temperatures will be a bit cooler today compared to the last few days. High temperatures on this Monday will peak in the mid-70s. Mostly sunny skies will be in place across the region today and on Tuesday.

CHILLY NIGHT AHEAD… Tonight will easily be the coolest night out of the next 7 days with overnight lows in the low- to mid-40s across the region. Temperatures at night are likely to be in the mid-50s for the remainder of the week after tonight.

ROUND OF RAIN & STORMS ON WEDNESDAY… Scattered showers and thunderstorms will become likely on Wednesday as an area of low pressure and trailing cold front move from west to east across the nation. Rain and storms will be most likely across our area from 6AM to 6PM on Wednesday, meaning most of the storms are expected during the daytime hours. There will be a widespread potential for scattered rain and storms across the Deep South. Please be aware of this if you’re traveling, particularly to the north to north Alabama or Tennessee.

SEVERE WEATHER RISK WEDNESDAY REMAINS LOW, FOR NOW… There is good evidence to suggest this storm system on Wednesday will not produce a widespread, significant severe weather event. That is the good news. The bad news is I cannot completely rule out one or two isolated, brief strong or even marginally severe thunderstorms. The main concern in the stronger storms will be the potential for damaging straight line winds that could potentially be capable of knocking down a tree or two across the region. Again, that will be the anomaly and NOT the trend on Wednesday.

MOSTLY SUNNY ON THANKSGIVING DAY… Rain and storms will clear out late Wednesday, meaning Thanksgiving Day on Thursday should be dry. Partly cloudy skies are in the forecast for Thursday with high temperatures likely to be in the mid-70s.

ANOTHER ROUND OF STORMS THIS WEEKEND… After a break on Thursday and Friday, rain chances are forecast to rise yet again for Saturday and Sunday as a frontal boundary approaches our area from the northwest. It is too early to know if severe weather will be a concern on Saturday. We are in the heart of our secondary severe weather/tornado season, thus every system like this one should be monitored carefully. We will keep you posted over the next few days in the RedZone Weather app.

IRON BOWL FORECAST… The 2020 edition of the Iron Bowl will be held in Tuscaloosa at Bryant-Denny Stadium on Saturday. Kickoff is scheduled for 2:30PM CST. As of today, there is a 60-70% chance of rain and storms. Game time temperatures will likely be in the mid-60s. The game will be televised on CBS.

TROPICAL UPDATE… No Gulf of Mexico or Caribbean developments are expected in the tropics this week. The National Hurricane Center is keeping tabs on an area of disturbed weather near and just south of Bermuda in the open waters of the Atlantic Ocean that could become a tropical storm. Regardless of if development happens, this storm will not be a direct concern for Alabama or northwest Florida. From NHC: “A trough of low pressure is producing disorganized showers and a few thunderstorms over the western Atlantic, generally between Bermuda and the Bahamas. This disturbance is expected to move northeastward, and there is a slight chance that it could acquire some subtropical characteristics before it merges with a cold front on Tuesday. Later in the week, this system may have a second opportunity to develop subtropical characteristics if it becomes separated from the front and meanders over the central Atlantic.”

APP… If you haven’t already downloaded the RedZone Weather app, now is a great time to do that. redzoneweather.com/app is the link to the free download. Once you have the RZW app installed on your iOS or Android device, be sure to visit the Alerts tab to turn on the specific notifications you’d like to receive. All notifications are handcrafted by me. No automation and we promise not to bug you!

See all the details in your Monday #rzw forecast video. Have a good start to your week!