Alabama is no stranger to turbulent weather in the forecast, but right now, the Yellowhammer State is in one of two distinct severe weather seasons.
March through May is the most active time period for inclement conditions, reports the National Weather Service (NWS). There is also a secondary season that typically runs from the beginning of November until mid-December.
Severe weather is expected in Alabama through the end of the week, with parts of the state seeing a risk for strong storms Wednesday night and Thursday, according to the NWS. More systems could impact the entire state during the weekend.
This comes as states to the northwest of Alabama are hunkering down for historic weather.
U.S. government forecasters are using a relatively rare “high-risk” designation — the highest category they use — to warn that a major tornado outbreak appears likely Wednesday in an area that's home to about 2.5 million people.
That area most at risk of catastrophic weather on Wednesday includes parts of west Tennessee including Memphis; northeast Arkansas; the southeast corner of Missouri; and parts of western Kentucky and southern Illinois.
NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center is predicting that a tornado outbreak in parts of the lower Mississippi Valley into the Mid-South and lower Ohio Valley. Numerous tornadoes, along with multiple EF3+ tornadoes, appear likely.
In addition, the center reports that tornadoes, significant severe wind gusts and large hail to very large hail will be possible across a broad area from north Texas northeastward to the southern Great Lakes.
The Norman, Oklahoma-based Storm Prediction Center also says that “multiple long-track EF3+ tornadoes, appear likely.” Tornadoes of that magnitude are among the strongest on the Enhanced Fujita scale, used to rate their intensity.
Historically, the “high-risk” designation has been used sparingly, but it did appear just a couple of weeks ago to warn of a deadly tornado outbreak in mid-March.
