Here is a link to some Blizzard of 93 stories and pictures shared by ABC 33/40 viewers if you want to bring back some memories this weekend:

http://www.jamesspann.com/blizzard.html

Here is an update on peak wind gusts today around the ABC 33/40 Weathernet:

Legion Field (Birmingham) 47 mph
Talladega Superspeedway 45 mph
Clanton (Peach Water Tower) 42 mph
Anniston 40 mph
Demopolis 39 mph
Hamilton 37 mph
Gadsden 35 mph
Tuscaloosa 31 mph
Cullman 25 mph

All are gusts since midnight last night.

The Friday afternoon video update is on the server:

http://beta.abc3340.com/weather/video.hrb

I failed to mention in the video that cool football jersey I am wearing in the video came from the kids at Westbrook Christian School in Rainbow City where I spoke at their chapel service this morning. Even has my name on the back. Too cool. The kids were great and I sure appreciate the invitation.

You can read the posts below from Brian Peters and Jason Simpson about today's wind... It is really howling out there today.

Coming attractions:

TOMORROW: The NAM model now is showing a high of 76 tomorrow. Yesterday the very same model was spitting out a high of 47 tomorrow. That is just too weird. The GFS is holding at 70, and J.B. Elliott is using that in his new afternoon forecast package that is about to be posted to the seven day planner page. Lots of sunshine, and still windy with gusts to 30 mph possible. Another great day to fly a kite.

SUNDAY: A cold front slips in here late Sunday with a chance of showers. Still looks like the best chance of rain comes Sunday night as a wave of low pressure forms on the front. Maybe a little thunder involved, but no severe weather. The latest QPF maps are showing totals of 1/2 to 1 inch for us, with the heavier totals to the south.

NEXT WEEK: A major storm system is still expected to roar through here at mid-week. Looks like the main action will come Wednesday night and early Thursday, and there will be potential for heavy rain, severe thunderstorms, or both. By Monday we should begin to have a pretty good handle on exactly what to expect.

The latter half of March still looks very active with a number of storm systems and temperature changes. Just what you expect this time of the year.

Good to see Alabama doing well... will be pulling for MSU in the next game against Florida. Love March Madness. Have a great weekend!

Today is a perfect day to understand how much noise the wind can make. Just stand outside for a few minutes and listen. The strong wind - gusting to over 30 mph in many places as noted by Jason's post below - makes noise as it interacts with trees, buildings, or whatever.

In many years of giving safety and spotter talks, I would run into people who told me that they heard the wind or a roaring sound so it had to be a tornado. Days like this one show that not to be the case. There are no tornadoes out there but the wind is making a good deal of noise. And we're only dealing with 30 to 50 mph gusts - imagine what it might sound like if it were blowing at 100 or 125 or 150 mph!

Ivan was a good example of wind noise, too. With strong wind for 14 or more hours, that howling sound could really get on your nerves. The howl with a tornado does not last nearly as long as it does as a hurricane moves by your location.

Don't let those kites get away from you today!!!

-Brian-

The National Weather Service has extended the Wind Advisory for central Alabama through Saturday. So far today, some of the peak wind gusts reported by our Pinpoint Neighborhood WeatherNet sites around look like this:

Birmingham (Legion Field): 47 MPH
Talladega (Super Speedway): 45 MPH
Clanton: 37 MPH
Demopolis: 37 MPH
Hamilton: 36 MPH
Anniston: 34 MPH
Gadsden: 32 MPH
Cullman: 24 MPH

Today's windy weather is caused by the contrast between a passing cold front (low pressure) and an expansive area of high pressure northwest of Alabama.

The National Weather Service says outdoor burning is "discouraged" because fires can get out of control quickly in windy conditions like this! The wind should back off a little by Saturday evening, but until then, it's great March kite-flying weather!

The Friday morning web video is on the server:

http://beta.abc3340.com/weather/video.hrb

I am ready for the weekend. How about you?

The wind is the big story today; winds will be in the 15 to 30 mph category today with higher gusts for higher elevations. There will be a few cloudy periods but the air remains very dry and most places will not see any rain.

WEEKEND: The output statistics remain all over the road. Now the GFS and the NAM are showing 70 for tomorrow. Just a few runs ago the NAM was suggesting the high tomorrow would be in the upper 40s! At this moment our forecast package has 61, but I am sure we will bump that up on the afternoon update based on the new numbers. Nice day tomorrow with ample sunshine. A cold front will bring the chance of showers late Sunday, with the best coverage of rain coming Sunday night and Monday morning as a wave of low pressure moves along the front. I notice the lifted index goes below zero here Sunday night, so some thunder will be possible as well. This is March, after all.

NEXT WEEK: The models are still advertising a major storm toward the middle of next week. The latest GFS in hand here takes a surface low from near Childress, Texas to southern Illinois, with our main stormy period coming Wednesday night and Thursday morning. The track would suggest a dual threat of heavy rain and severe thunderstorms here.

Still looks like a progressive and stormy pattern for the latter half of March, which is what you expect this time of the year.

Headed up to Rainbow City today to do a chapel service for the kids at Westbrook Christian. I am looking forward to it!

Woke up at 4:30 am and asked myself if I wanted to go back to sleep or enjoy some fresh coffee. The coffee won. Three cheers to whoever invented coffee!

.....Looks like the final Birmingham low this morning will be around 44 or 45. We had forecast 40 but it was a balance between whether the wind would go calm and when the clouds would move in.

.....12 years ago the "Blizzard of '93" was about to occur. (See the story by James below) I am one of those who does not believe that you will never see another storm like this. Odds are that you will not but one could occur at anytime in winter.

.....Remember, our weather records in Alabama and especially in Birmingham are just a small slice of time. Our Birmingham records date back around 120 years. I would give my right arm for a thousand-year data base (well, maybe my right toe.) No telling what occurred in that time frame. But a thousand years ago, this area was nothing but wild country--thick forests, wild animals, you name it.

.....Just for the fun of it, one TRIVIA question concerning the blizzard:

Q. What was the deepest official snowfall (not drifts) in Alabama from the storm and where did that occur?

Life goes on...snow or no snow...