Tonight and Saturday 4/10/15

Showers and thunderstorms will continue south of a cold front, affecting the southeastern portion of Central Alabama. Coverage is expected to diminish through the overnight period. Behind the cold front, cooler air will spread southward and overnight lows across the north will be in the upper 40s to lower 50s. Temperatures across the south will remain in the mid 50s to lower 60s.

Showers will end early across far southeast Central Alabama, with clearing skies and dry conditions expected for the remainder of Saturday. Temperatures will be in the 70s.

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Weekend Severe Weather

Here are the timing and threat levels to the weekend severe weather event.

Remember any of this can change due to the changing of the weather patteren.

Please be weather ready and keep tuned to your local broadcast station and/or

this page for further updates. In any event of severe weather damage,

contact your local police dept and the Barbour County EMA. ~EJ

Between 3 pm and 6 pm a threat of elevated storms will move into the

southern counties of central Alabama. These storms will carry with them

the potential for damaging straight line winds and large hail. Prior to 6 pm,

any tornado threat should remain south of central Alabama, closer to the Gulf Coast.

After 6 pm on Saturday, the severe weather threat will slide northward.

Damaging straight line winds and large hail will be possible as far north

as the I-20 corridor. As the warm front moves towards central Alabama,

a tornado risk will begin for our southern most counties.

After midnight tonight, the severe weather threat is expected to drift northward

as the warm front moves northward. The northward extent of the tornado

threat will greatly depend on the location of the warm front. Tornado chances

will be best along and south of the warm front. The cold front will also begin to

move into our western counties during this time frame. Although there is the

potential for redevelopment along the front, the threat for severe weather will

end once the cold front moves through your area.

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National Severe Weather Preparedness Week - Being a Force of Nature

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) partnered to designate March 3-9, 2013, as National Severe Weather Preparedness Week, and is calling upon all Americans to Be a Force of Nature.

Barbour County EMA is committed to Being a Force of Nature and pledges to do so by: knowing our risk, taking action, and being an example for our families and community by sharing the steps we took. Because we live in an area prone to severe thunderstorms, the recent severe weather reminded us that this weather can strike anywhere and at any time.

Just last year, there were more than 450 weather-related fatalities and nearly 2,600 injuries. Each time severe weather threatens we hear stories of ordinary Americans who do the extraordinary to save loved ones – a mother protecting her children by shielding them from flying debris, a homeowner opening up his storm shelter to neighbors, neighbors helping a senior in a wheelchair get to a safe shelter, individuals ensuring friends are aware of the current watch or warning in their area.

Tornadoes struck approximately 46 states, caused over $1.6 billion in damage and nearly 70 fatalities. There were more than 935 tornadoes in 2012, with 206 in April alone. While April and May are peak months, tornadoes happen all year round.

Building a Weather-Ready Nation requires that every individual and community take action because severe weather knows no boundaries and affects us all. Be a Force of Nature by making a public pledge to be prepared at ready.gov/severe-weather.

What can you do to Prepare?

Knowing your risk, taking action and being an example by sharing your knowledge and actions through your social network are just a few steps you can take to be better prepared and assist in saving lives.

Know Your Risk: The first step to becoming weather-ready is to understand the type of hazardous weather that can affect where you live and work, and how the weather could impact you and your family. Every state in the United States has experienced tornadoes and severe weather, so everyone is exposed to some degree of risk. Check the weather forecast regularly and visit ready.gov/severe-weather to learn more about how to be better prepared and how you can protect your family during emergencies.
 
Pledge and Take Action: Be Force of Nature by taking the Pledge to Prepare at ready.gov/severe-weather. When you pledge to prepare, you will take the first step to making sure that you and your family are prepared for severe weather. This includes filling out your family communications plan that you can email to yourself, putting an emergency kit together, keeping important papers and valuables in a safe place, and getting involved.

Obtain a NOAA Weather Radio, and check to see if your cell phone is equipped to receive Wireless Emergency Alerts and sign up for localized alerts from emergency management officials. Stay informed by having multiple sources for weather alerts - NOAA Weather Radio, Weather.gov, and Wireless Emergency Alerts. Subscribe to receive alerts at www.weather.gov/subscribe.

Be an Example: Once you have taken action and pledged to Be a Force of Nature, share your story with your family and friends. Create a video and post on a video sharing site; post your story on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, comment on a blog, or share through any other social media site. Technology today makes it easier than ever to be a good example and share the steps you took to help us achieve the vision of a Weather-Ready Nation.

Join us today and pledge to prepare for the severe weather in our area.
Information on the different types of severe weather such as tornadoes, severe thunderstorms and flooding is available at www.weather.gov and ready.gov/severe-weather or the Spanish-language web site www.listo.gov.

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Severe Weather Safety Rules

Severe Weather possible Monday night into Tuesday morning.  Check out the Safety guidelines below.

Here are some definitions and guidelines to follow to help  keep you and your family safe: A Severe Thunderstorm Watch is issued when conditions are favorable  for the development of severe thunderstorms, people located in and around the watch area should keep an eye to the sky and listen  to their NOAA weather radio all hazards or tune to local broadcast  media for further weather information. The watch is intended to give  you time to prepare, time to review safety rules. A Severe Thunderstorm Warning is issued when a severe thunderstorm  has been detected by national weather service doppler radar or a reliable  report has been received. A warning is usually issued for portions of  one or two counties, for an hour or less. If the warning includes your  neighborhood or work place, you should take immediate action to protect  your life and the lives of others. Severe thunderstorms can produce  large hail and damaging winds. Tornadoes can and occasionally  do accompany severe thunderstorms. Treat this warning the same  as you would a tornado warning by taking the proper safety precautions. The best defense against thunderstorms is to stay inside a sturdy building  or shelter that can protect you from deadly lightning, large hail, damaging  winds, flooding rain and tornadoes. Fortunately, thunderstorms typically do  not last very long and will most often pass by your location in less than one  hour. Once in a shelter, stay away from windows and avoid electrical  equipment and plumbing. Remember to bring pets inside.  If there is time, secure loose objects outside as these objects often become  dangerous flying debris in high winds. Postpone outdoor activities until the storms have passed. If caught  outside, take shelter in a sturdy enclosed building or hard top automobile  immediately. Avoid open spaces, isolated objects, high ground and  metallic objects. Get out of boats and away from bodies of water.  Remember, if you can hear thunder, you are close enough to the  storm to be struck by lightning. If a tornado is spotted, act quickly and move to the lowest level basement of  your shelter, putting as many walls between yourself and the outside as  possible. Review your safety plan now and be prepared when severe weather threatens your area!

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Severe Weather Awareness Week Feb 17-22

Governor Robert Bentley has declared February 17-22th, 2013 as Severe Weather Awareness Week in Alabama. The National Weather Service, the Alabama Emergency Management Agency, and other supporting organizations, ask for your help in providing the public with information about severe weather safety. Advance planning and increased awareness will help residents of Alabama survive these deadly storms.

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Severe Weather Wednesday afternoon

Wednesday: Showers and thunderstorms, mainly before 3pm. Some of the storms could be severe. High near 69. Breezy, with a south wind 15 to 20 mph becoming west in the afternoon.

Winds could gust as high as 30 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%.

Wednesday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers before 9pm. Cloudy during the early evening, then gradual clearing, with a low around 35. Northwest wind 5 to 15 mph.

 

All interests should closely monitor weather conditions after Midnight tonight through Wednesday, as severe weather will be likely across Central Alabama. This map shows the approximate times for severe weather. There is the good possibility of severe storms developing ahead of the main squall line. Isolated tornadoes are possible in the individual storms ahead of the squall line and with the squall line. These are approximate times and are subject to change.

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