An all new edition of the ABC 33/40 Weather Xtreme video is available in the player on the right sidebar of the blog. You can subscribe to the Weather Xtreme video on iTunes by clicking here.
BIG WET DOWN COMING UP: While there is certainly the chance of significant flooding on the Gulf Coast this holiday weekend, the tropical depression in the Gulf could be very beneficial for our part of Alabama with a good soaking rain event coming up in the days ahead.
TODAY/TOMORROW: Our weather won’t change much over the next two days despite the tropical trouble not too far away. Hot, hazy days with highs in the low to mid 90s. Afternoon showers and storms will remain very widely spaced, and the chance of any one spot getting wet is only about one in five.
FOOTBALL WEATHER: Mostly fair weather for the high school games tonight with only a small risk of a shower. Kickoff temperatures will be around 90, falling through the 80s during the game.
College football gets underway tomorrow. Alabama hosts Kent State at Bryant Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa; the kickoff will come shorty before 11:30 tomorrow morning; the sky will be partly sunny with a kickoff temperature of around 92 degrees, rising into the mid 90s during the game. The chance of a shower during the game is only in the 20 percent range. Auburn hosts Utah State at Jordan-Hare Stadium; at the 11:00 a.m. kickoff the temperature should be near 87 degrees, rising into the low 90s by the fourth quarter. For now we will project a slight chance of rain during the game; we will keep an eye on TD 13 for any greater impact.
SUNDAY THROUGH TUESDAY: As the tropical system very slowly moves northeast, this is when we could see some very significant rain amounts here. Rain should become much more likely Sunday, and Monday looks very wet with rain likely much of the day, possibly heavy at times. Due to the slow movement of the system, tropical rain should continue into Tuesday. We are projecting rain amounts of 2 to 5 inches for North/Central Alabama, with isolated amounts to 7 inches during these three days. We might even see some flooding issues despite the dry weather in recent weeks and low flash flood guidance values.
And, of course, the heat backs off due to the clouds and rain, with highs only in the low 80s on these three days. Some spots might not make it out of the 70s.
GULF COAST WEATHER: TD 13 in the Gulf should become Tropical Storm Lee (or maybe Maria) later today. Be sure and watch the Weather Xtreme video for the specific graphics and details. The main impact of this system will be the threat of heavy rain and flooding; the latest QPF chart from HPC shows potential for two FEET of rain over Southeast Louisiana, and amounts over 10 inches possible for the Alabama and Northwest Florida coasts tomorrow through Monday. Needless to say, flooding could become rather serious in spots.
In addition to the flood threat, dangerous rip tides and very rough surf will continue from Gulf Shores east to Panama City through the holiday weekend. Many public beaches are closed. Not exactly a “Chamber of Commerce” Labor Day weekend for the beaches.
LATER NEXT WEEK: Interesting to note the GFS keeps our highs in the 80s all next week with lingering moisture. We will probably have to maintain the risk of lingering showers Wednesday and Thursday as the moisture is never really taken away. The weather looks drier by Friday and the following weekend.
KATIA: Now a strong tropical storm in the Central Atlantic, Katia will regain hurricane status within 36 hours, and is expected to recurve off the East Coast with no U.S. landfall. The latest GFS runs have been a little farther west, taking the system between the U.S. coast and Bermuda late next week. Again, see the Weather Xtreme video for details.
The guys at NHC are considering giving a system over the North Atlantic tropical storm status, but that thing looks like a hybrid to me without true tropical characteristics. If by chance they name that one Lee, our Gulf system will become Maria.
FOLLOW ALONG: Here are our weather team Twitter accounts….
| James Spann | Jason Simpson | Ashley Brand |
| J. B. Elliott | Bill Murray | Brian Peters |
| Dr. Tim Coleman | WeatherBrains Podcast | E-Warn (AL wx watches/warnings) |
WEATHER BRAINS: Don’t forget you can listen to our weekly 90 minute netcast anytime on the web, or on iTunes. This is the show all about weather featuring many familiar voices, including our meteorologists here at ABC 33/40.
I will be up in Haleyville today visiting with the Chamber of Commerce… I will have the afternoon Weather Xtreme video posted by 3:30 or so this afternoon. We, of course, will have running updates on the Gulf tropical depression throughout the day. Stay tuned…
