Strong To Severe Storms Possible Saturday Night

by Ben Lang

It was a very warm afternoon across central and south Alabama, with temperatures surging into the upper 70s to low 80s. In fact, Montgomery tied a record high temperature of 80° set back in 2016. While most of the area saw plenty of sunshine this afternoon, clouds increase tonight in advance of an approaching storm system.

Showers and storms enter our northwest counties between 10PM and midnight. Some storms could be strong to severe, with a main threat of strong straight-line winds and brief tornadoes. However, the overall severe threat is low, and not everyone will see severe weather. It looks like a line of storms marches southeast through our area during the overnight hours. The storms and severe threat should exit southeast Alabama by around 6AM Sunday morning. The line of storms marks the leading edge of a cold front. Outside of the severe weather threat, winds could gust between 30 and 40 mph as the front moves through.

We won’t see a huge immediate drop in temperatures as the front swings through. Lows tonight only fall to around 60°. Sunshine quickly returns Sunday, with afternoon highs recovering into the low and mid 60s. Colder air arrives Sunday night, however, with lows falling into the mid to upper 30s.

Next week begins noticeably cooler. Highs on Monday only reach the upper 40s to low 50s despite a mostly sunny sky. Monday night lows likely fall below freezing area-wide. Tuesday only looks a touch warmer, with highs in the low to mid 50s under a mostly sunny sky. Tuesday night lows also fall into the 30s, but just above freezing for most.

Wednesday and Thursday feature moderating temperatures, and a continuation of dry weather. Highs reach the 60s each day, with a mostly sunny sky Wednesday and a partly cloudy sky Thursday. Another round of rain is possible next Friday. Looks like that system departs fairly quickly, and we could return to dry weather next Saturday. However, next weekend looks cool with highs only near 60° Saturday and Sunday. Sunday may even feature a chance for rain.