No Dull Days Here

The first two months of 2006 are history. So far, little in the way of weather fireworks for Alabama. Just a few minor winter weather events, otherwise things have been fairly quiet in the weather office. We wonder if they will stay that way.

We are now in the spring tornado season, when severe thunderstorms can go on the rampage across Alabama and the deep south. The three big months are March, April, and May. We must remember that winter storm events are still possible; the greatest snowstorm in our history was on March 12-13, 1993, and 5 inches of snow was measured in Birmingham on April 3, 1987.

Flooding can also be a big issue in spring; the April 1979 river flooding in Alabama was unusually severe; much of downtown Northport was underwater due to flooding on the Warrior River (hopefully that won’t happen again thanks to the new levee system there). Historic flooding was also seen along the Tombigbee River at Demopolis, and the Alabama River at Selma.

The first of June will bring the beginning of the hurricane season. Dr. William Gray forecasts 9 hurricanes and 17 named storms in 2006; another active year. His forecast indicates a 47 percent chance of a major hurricane striking the Gulf coast. Not good news for everyone still recovering from storms like Dennis and Katrina. Of course, we will be dealing with the usual heat and humidity during the summer months, with the heat peaking in July and August.

The golden days of fall are always a breath of fresh air, with our first frost usually coming in mid to late October. And, then we deal with the fall tornado season in November and December. One thing is for sure… there is always something going on around here. Weather forecasting in Alabama is never dull!