Rain and thunderstorms have increased this morning over western sections of the state as a low level jet transports lots of warm, moist air northward out of Louisiana, across Mississippi and into western Alabama.
The storms are of the elevated variety, meaning their bases are several thousand feet above the ground, above a more stable layer near the surface. They can make for some great thunder. And some fairly significant hail.
Jean in Aliceville reported five minutes of dime sized hail at 8 a.m. Lightning was visible to the NW from the Tuscaloosa Airport, according to the last observation. A thunderstorm was reported at Columbus, Mississippi.
Rain covers much of Cullman, Winston and Marion Counties at this hour extending down into Lamar, Pickens, northern Tuscaloosa, Fayette, Walker and western Jefferson County.
The activity is moving quickly northeast at 35-40 mph.
This activity should stay north of the city of Birmingham, but will cross northern sections of the Metro. I have heard very faint rumblings of distant thunder in the past few minutes here in Trussville.
The heaviest rain was over northern Fayette County north of Fayette back into Lamar County. Some one hour rainfall rate of one half to three quarters of an inch are likely in these areas.
Rain and storms will continue to increase across Central Alabama later today as a warm front forms and moves north. A large area of one inch to one and one half inches of rain is expected. Just what the doctor ordered.
Tuesday looks to be a very active day with significant severe weather possible across much of Alabama and a wide area of Louisiana to Ohio. It will be one of those days where you will have to have your personal severe weather plan ready. Know how you will get weather information at all times and where you will go if severe weather threatens. We will have plenty of time to pinpoint the threat tomorrow, but there is a threat of tornadoes with this system.
The caveat is instability. But with the Gulf open for business, it looks like widespread dewpoints in the 60s and temperatures in the 70s could pose problems for us here in Alabama as the wind fields will be strong.
