Blow Me Down...

Morning video update is online and ready to go:

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

The wind is howling this morning, and looking at the projected surface patterns today I would imagine we might see gusts to 40 mph later today even with no thunderstorms involved.

No real big changes in the forecast package. We will highlight rain and storms today and early tonight; no unstable air here, so any severe storms should be near the coast. I would not be surprised to see a few tornado warnings out of Mobile today. But, we might have enough pressure gradient wind to knock down some trees and power lines around here. Very, very windy.

The NWS office in Huntsville has issued a flood watch for today for their counties up in the Tennessee Valley. I don't think flooding will be a big issue here since the ground has gotten a great chance to dry out over the past couple of weeks. Rainfall amounts to 2 inches are possible near the Mississippi border, with totals closer to 1/2 inch over far east Alabama.

The surface low will basically move up I-59 tonight, from Meridian to Chattanooga, which will bring a brief window for some wintry precipitation late tonight and early tomorrow. BUFKIT analysis here shows the potential for a little freezing rain or sleet after midnight over northwest Alabama, and then a shot of light snow, before it all ends. The ground has warmed up with 60s yesterday and 60s today, so I don't think we will have any major issues. These backwash type things rarely cause big problems, but they can be a nuisance.

The real big time snow from today's storm will come in the corridor from northeast of Little Rock to Cincinnati. Somebody around the Ohio River will probably have 10 inches of snow before it is all over.

We continue to mention flurries around here tomorrow morning as Arctic air returns, coming from a whopper 1050 high over Montana. Wind chill values will be below freezing all day tomorrow with temperatures in the 30s.

CHRISTMAS: COLD. Moisture in the Gulf could creep far enough inland for some snow at Mobile, Gulf Shores, Pensacola, and Destin. Pretty amazing; I don't know if anyone down there will actually get snow on the ground, but that will be a great treat for coastal kids Saturday morning if a few flakes are flying.

NEXT WEEK: Cold air is gone, and the GFS is suggesting it might stay gone for two weeks. No real confidence in the long term with the pattern change.