Heavy Rain & Gusty Wind

A line of heavy showers continues to slowly move east across northwest Alabama early this afternoon.  This line will continue to move eastward and be near the I-65 corridor within the hour and start moving into northeast Alabama by mid afternoon. There have only been a handful of lightning strikes along the line, as it has struggled to intensify.  Below is the latest radar as of 12:00 pm.

A Wind Advisory is in effect until 9:00 pm tonight for the entire Tennessee Valley, with a sustained southerly wind between 15-20 mph, with gusts as high as 35 mph.  Temperatures have been slow to warm and will struggle to do so through the afternoon with the clouds and rain. High temperatures will be mostly in the mid to upper 70s. Below is a check of 12:00 pm temperatures.

The strong to severe threat remains minimal, with most just receiving some moderate to heavy rain, with a few wind gusts along the leading edge of the rain. Showers behind the main line have weakened and dissipated throughout the morning, with just some patches of light rain/sprinkles.  The line of showers moving through the Tennessee Valley is associated with a pre-frontal trough, with the actual cold front associated with the low pressure system still well off to the west in Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas.  As the cold front moves through later this evening and tonight, there may be some additional development of showers and possibly a thunderstorm, but the strong/severe threat will be diminishing after sunset.  The sky will clear from west to east as the front moves east and a cooler and drier air mass filters in.

Monday is shaping up to be a decent day, with a mostly sunny sky and highs just below seasonal averages, in the low 70s.  Dry conditions will persist through Wednesday, before another storm system moves through, bringing more rain and a stronger shot of cooler and drier air.

- Jennifer Watson

Twitter: @JWatson_Wx

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