First Alert: Heavy rain and gusty winds possible through early Saturday morning

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WBRC) - The Tornado Watch has ended for Central Alabama. Outside of any storms though, a Wind Advisory is in effect until 7 AM CDT. South-southwest winds will be at 15-25 MPH with gusts up to 45 MPH possible at times. First Alert AccuTrack shows a line of non-severe storms slowly pushing into Central Alabama tonight along with some scattered storms out ahead of the main batch. The severe threat is waning in our neck of the woods, but severe storms are ongoing into east Tennessee and north Georgia. The line will still be capable of producing gusty winds, frequent lightning, and flooding. The tornado threat is not zero but very low.

Once any storms clear out, today will end up mostly sunny, warm, and breezy. Highs are forecast to climb into the upper 70s and lower 80s with southwest winds at 10-20 mph. An isolated strong storm could develop in the afternoon hours, but the threat appears low. If a storm somehow develops Saturday afternoon, it would be capable of producing gusty winds and large hail. The cold front will stall out to our south and some isolated thundershowers will be possible south of I-20 during the evening.

Cooler and drier air will slowly filter into the northern half of Alabama Sunday morning. Temperatures will likely start out in the low to mid 50s. The first half of Sunday is looking dry with a partly cloudy sky. High temperatures are forecast to warm into the upper 70s. Rain and storms will move into our southern counties Sunday evening. By Sunday night, most of Central Alabama will see rain and thunderstorms. Severe ingredients could increase Sunday night across I-20 and points to the south. The main threats will be large hail and damaging winds. Tornado threat looks extremely low in this setup, but can’t be completely ruled out. If the threat for severe weather increases, we will let you know. Right now, the best chance appears to be across the southern half of the state, which is under Level 1 out of 5, marginal risk.

Unsettled weather will continue for the start of the work week. We will likely wake up with storms Monday morning, but the stormy weather will eventually drift south of I-20 by Monday evening. A few strong storms can’t be ruled out Monday morning and into the early afternoon hours. The main threats will be gusty winds and hail. Morning lows will start off in the low 60s with high temperatures climbing into the mid 70s. Rain chances will be possible south of I-20 Monday night into Tuesday. We will likely dry out by Tuesday evening. Heavy rain could set up across the southern half of the state where rainfall totals could add up around 1-3 inches. Central Alabama will likely end up with an additional 1-2 inches of rainfall between now and next Tuesday. 

We could see a surge of cooler air move into Central Alabama by the middle of next week. We could see lows in the 40s Wednesday morning with highs in the upper 60s. Next Wednesday is looking sunny and dry. Long-range models hint that we could see another stretch of warm and unsettled weather by the end of next week. Next Friday into Saturday could end up stormy across the Southeast. Active pattern is expected as we finish out March and move into April. 

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