
POP-UP THUNDERSTORMS OVER NEXT SEVERAL DAYS; WAVES OF BENEFICIAL RAIN… Memorial Day Monday will be wet at times with scattered to numerous showers and thunderstorms expected across the region. Rain totals are projected to be in the 1.5″ to 4″ range for the vast majority of communities across south Alabama and northwest Florida over the next 5 days. Those are “cumulative” totals, meaning the total over the five day period. Flash flooding may become an issue if/when thunderstorms train over the same areas. I realize some communities, particularly in northwest Florida have not had much rain over the last couple of days, but it’s important to note that some communities (like Saraland and Creola in Mobile County) have had 9-10″ in total just in the last few days. Depending on how much rain your community has previously picked up will determine the overall flash flooding risk.
WHAT TO EXPECT – OVERNIGHT INTO MEMORIAL DAY MONDAY… Lingering, isolated showers and thunderstorms will be possible all night into tomorrow morning. I expect the overall coverage of rain and storms to fade throughout the night. Most spots will be without rain around 8-9AM tomorrow morning. Around 10-11AM, I expect scattered to numerous showers and thunderstorms to rapidly develop across the region. Thunderstorms will be capable of producing torrential downpours of rain, cloud-to-ground lightning, loud claps of thunder, and gusty winds. The overall tornado risk on Monday is very low, if not zero in most spots. I would not be surprised, however, if a few severe thunderstorm warnings are needed tomorrow afternoon as downbursts causing gusty winds will be possible. It will NOT rain all day in any given spot, but definitely have a way to get inside quickly if you’re planning to be outside during the day.
POP-UP STORMS IN EACH OF THE NEXT 5 DAYS… Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday will feature more of the same: Daily, pop-up storms mostly (although not exclusively!) in the afternoon and evening hours. Storms will likely be well under severe limits in most cases, but lightning will be a concern each day. It will NOT rain all day in any given locale, but rain could be heavy at times when storms develop. Temperatures will be remarkably consistent with highs in the 80s and lows around 70°.
FLOOD WATCH MAY BE NEEDED… We note that parts of southeast Mississippi and eastern Louisiana are involved in a Flood Watch valid through 7PM tomorrow. A Flood Watch may be needed for parts of south Alabama and northwest Florida in the days ahead as flash flooding will be a real concern if storms train over the same areas.
BENEFICIAL RAIN TO HELP DROUGHT CONDITIONS… Despite the flooding risk at times, the next few days will be monumentally helpful in easing the ongoing, severe drought conditions across the region. There is a good chance that much of the drought may be erased by the rain we have had and will have in the days ahead. Excellent news!
TORNADO WARNING POLICY… Any time there is an active tornado warning in effect for southwest Alabama or northwest Florida, we provide uninterrupted, live video coverage on Facebook Live and YouTube Live. Our detailed coverage commitment is outlined at redzoneweather.com/coverage. We are proud to cover all parts of Escambia (AL), Covington, Monroe, Conecuh, Baldwin, Mobile, Clarke, Washington (AL), Butler, Escambia (FL), Santa Rosa, and Okaloosa counties. If you live in any locale in those counties, be sure to tune into our coverage whenever there is an active tornado warning!
APP ALERTS… redzoneweather.com/app is the link where you can download the free RedZone Weather app. We post brief updates throughout each day in the app, keeping you up-to-date about the latest happenings in weather across south Alabama and northwest Florida. Once you have the free app downloaded to your iOS or Android device, be sure to visit the Alerts tab (lower right corner) then tap the large Alert Settings button to customize the alerts you would like to receive straight from me.
I will have updates posted overnight and throughout the day on Memorial Day, as needed, in the RedZone Weather app. My next detailed forecast video will be posted by 7:15AM tomorrow morning.
Have a nice Sunday evening!
