Alabama is gearing up for winter weather. Forecasters say moisture coming from the Gulf of Mexico and cold temperatures from the west is creating freezing rain, snow, and ice. The cold conditions could persist from the Tennessee Valley to the central part of the state. The concern is that temperatures will warm and then freeze again overnight. Forecaster Kurt Weber with the National Weather Service says that could create ice on the roads.
“If we have traffic, and it packs down the ice, melts, packs down snow, not some of the ice and snow. I mean, you're going to actually get that refreeze until, you know, we get into Friday afternoon, when the temperatures go above freezing. So both can be dangerous,” said Weber.
The blast of winter storms is closing schools, snarling flights and putting millions of residents on alert across parts of the Deep South and south-central U.S. The storm started dumping a mix of sleet and heavy snow Thursday morning in north Texas and Oklahoma, where schools canceled classes for more than 1 million students. Closures also kept students home in Kansas City and Arkansas. Again, Kurt Weber of the National Weather Service says the worst conditions for Alabama could come with overnight temperatures…
“They'll probably drop the freezing in most locations, and then continue to drop into the morning hours,” he said. “So, you know, we may have more of a mess on our hands, even as we go into Friday night because of just refreezing of whatever's fallen and melted
The cold snap coincided with rare January wildfires tearing through the Los Angeles area, forcing residents to flee from burning homes through flames, ferocious winds and towering clouds of smoke. Weber says conditions in Alabama should improve by Monday.
