On this date, the second major hurricane of the year to hit the United States struck the Bayou Country of Louisiana with little warning. Heavy destruction was reported along the coast from Timbalier Bay in Louisiana to Pensacola, Florida. Landfall occurred between Port Eads and New Orleans. Winds reached hurricane force around nightfall and continued to increase until the eye crossed the shore about 11 p.m. By 10 PM, the storm surge was increasing water levels along the low-lying coastal sections. Tides reached fifteen feet along the Louisiana coast and sixteen feet on the Chandeleur Islands. Waves reached as high as the lantern at the Chandeleur Island Lighthouse. Over 2,000 people died in the storm, 779 from Cheniere Caminanda and 250 at Grand Lake alone.

The hurricane had slipped across the Gulf undetected after crossing the Yucatan Peninsula from the northwest Caribbean and struck without warning. Cheneire Camindad was the largest settlement on the Louisiana coast with a population of 2,000. Cheneire was never rebuilt. Nearly 800 of its residents died in the hurricane.

The combined death tolls of the October Louisiana hurricane and the August Sea Islands Hurricane made the 1893 Hurricane Season the second deadliest on record in the U.S., behind only the 1900 season.

The Friday afternoon map discussion video is on the server:

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

TROPICS: Looks like the name Stan will go the system in the far eastern Atlantic, near 12N/35W. That thing looks like a tropical storm now, but it will move north, and not get anywhere close to the U.S. mainland.

So, the tropical wave in the Caribbean, if it develops over the weekend, will get the name Tammy as it moves toward the northern Mexican coast or the far southern Texas coast.

And, lets not forget hurricane OTIS near the southern tip of Baja in the eastern Pacific. Our friend Otis will be moving up the Gulf of California, and the moisture is aimed toward Arizona and the southwest U.S. by the middle of next week. We will probably to have to forecast the chance of some locally heavy rain toward the middle of next week on KGCB-FM in Arizona, one of our affiliate radio stations.

AROUND HERE: Scroll down to see the long list of lows across Alabama this morning. Had plenty of spots in the mid to upper 40s.. sure felt nice. But, we will deal with rising temperatures and humidity levels over the weekend as the mercury heads back toward the mid 80s tomorrow and Sunday.

I really think most places will have no rain over the weekend. We will still mention a slight risk of a shower tomorrow and Sunday, but the chance of rain for the football games in Tuscaloosa and Auburn, and the races at Talledega, are tiny.

NEXT WEEK: We might see a few showers late Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday thanks to an approaching cold front and increasing moisture from both the south and the east, but the GFS is not very bullish on significant rain at this point.

There is some chance a little cooler air will filter in here in about a week, but the front will be hanging up somewhere over Alabama.

LONG RANGE: The GFS shows a significant upper trough over the eastern half of the nation in the October 15-17 time frame; that looks like a nice pop of chilly air if the model is correct.

I will be headed down to Demopolis for my annual "first Saturday in October" road trip into west Alabama. I will emcee the Miss Christmas On The River beauty pageant, something I have been doing for about the last 15 years. It has become one of the markers in the year for me; when it is time for the Miss COTR pagaent I know that fall has arrived, and the colder winds will soon follow, along the the holidays. The best time of the year...

Have a wonderful weekend.

A nice crisp morning across Alabama, although not much of the cool air reached the extreme south. Here is a list of morning lows 60 degrees or lower. (Updated at 10:45 am to include 14 additional Alabama reports)

45 in Belle Mina
46 in Valley Head, Florence and Meridianville
47 in Hartselle and at Russell Cave National Monument
48 in Desoto State Park, Hamilton and Huntsville Airport
49 in Decatur, Belgreen, Moulton, Hytop and Athens
50 in Russellville, Hazel Green, Cullman, Fort Payne, Muscle Shoals, Madison, Hackleburg, Hamilton
51 in Bankhead National Forest
52 in Section and Albertville
53 in Parrish, Jasper and Fayette
54 in Mentone, Collinsville and Gadsden Airport
55 in Pinson, Huntsville (atop Monte Sano) and Shoal Creek (el. 908 ft., east of Anniston)
56 in Leeds, Reform, Northport and Crossville
57 at Birmingham Airport, Wedowee, Helena, Talladega
58 at Tuscaloosa, Anniston (at elevation of 1201 feet) Trussville, Rainbow City and Centreville
59 at Livingston, Alexander City, Eutaw and atop Mt. Cheaha
60 at Anniston Airport, Clanton and Valley

OUTSIDE ALABAMA
37 in Jefferson, North Carolina
39 at Beech Mountain and on Mt. Mitchell, North Carolina
14 at Bondurant, Wyoming (USA Lower 48 states coldest)
25 at Barrow, coldest in Alaska

The Friday morning map discussion video is on the server:

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

Coolest temperature I have seen so far this morning is 49 up at Decatur... J.B. will run a full list of morning lows here a little later. Really feels good out there. But, the cool air won't last long as temperatures and humidity values will increase over the weekend.

I still think most places will be dry over the weekend. We have a slight risk of a shower in the forecast package for tomorrow and Sunday, but the chance of any one spot getting wet is only about one in ten. The impressive vort max on satellite images this morning over the southwest U.S. will move well north of Alabama as it dampens out.

NEXT WEEK: Monday and Tuesday should be warm and dry. The GFS now shows moisture moving in here from the east on Wednesday, which would mean increasing clouds and maybe some rain if the model is correct. Then, a front moves in here on Thursday which might bring a shower, and then some cooler air by Friday. The GFS shows the front stalling near Montgomery... which means that cool air shot probably won't last long either. But then again shots of cool air are not supposed to last long around here in October. The season is very young.

TROPICS: We have a new hurricane over in the eastern Pacific... hurricane OTIS. All I can do is think of Andy, Barney, and that jail cell. Actually some moisture from Otis could bring the risk of heavy rain to the southwest U.S. by early next week.

Our wave in the Caribbean is still having a hard time getting its act together. I still think this one becomes tropical storm Stan, and the models have shifted northward. The GFS takes it toward Brownsville, Texas early next week so we will need to keep an eye on it.

Will have the next video update ready by 3:30 today.... enjoy your Friday!