2006 Top Weather Stories in Alabama…
10. NWS Mobile Cited. The NWS Mobile was awarded the NOAA gold medal for efforts during and following Hurricane Katrina. No other NWS office has suffered more landfalling tropical storms in their area of responsibility since 1995.
9. Spring hailstorms. Tennis ball sized hail was observed at Harselle on April 7 and baseball seized hail at Lanett, Talladega and Sylacauga on 4/19.
8. Summer heat. Tuscaloosa observed 76 straight days with 90F during the summer. The streak ended on August 28th. On June 21st, Birmingham reached 100F for the first time since August 29, 2000. It was 101F at Pinson on that very hot day.
7. Haleyville Dust Devil. On July 24th, a dust devil caused $20,000 in damage to a chicken house north of Haleyville. Some debris was carried over one quarter mile away. There were no thunderstorms anywhere in the vicinity when the dust devil formed.
6. April 7/8 Tornadoes: A series of F1 tornadoes struck parts of Marion, Winston and Jefferson Counties during the evening of the 7th into the early morning of the 8th. Damage was heaviest at Haleyville and near Hamilton where injuries occurred. Damage was reported in Roebuck and Gardendale just after midnight from F1 tornadoes.
5. Significant September Tornado Outbreak. The outbreak of 28 tornadoes that struck from Illinois and Missouri down to Alabama was a record for the largest September tornado outbreak not caused by a landfalling tropical cyclone in the U.S. In Alabama, tornadoes were reported at Vandiver, Locust Fork and Oneonta where three people were injured.
4. November Tornadoes. Several tornadoes were reported across South Central and Southeast Alabama on November 15th, including one that struck Taylor Road in Montgomery and Pintlala.
3. Lightning Tragedy. On July 16th, an eleven year old boy was struck by lightning while watering his animals near Elberta. Witnesses said there was only one cloud in the sky and that the sun was shining at the time. It was apparently the very first lightning strike from the developing storm. It was one of only two direct weather fatalities this year in Alabama. The other was a lady killed by falling chimney when tornado struck Belleville in Conecuh County on 1/13
2. Gusty wind leads to electrocution at Talladega. On April 26th, two men died instantly when the flagpole they were setting up atop their RV at the Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama was blown by a wind gust into power lines.
1. Birmingham Snowless Streak: It has been 2,527 days since we have had at least a tenth of an inch (the definition of measurable snow). In case you are wondering, it last snowed on January 28, 2000. It is the longest ever observed since regular observations began in 1895.
