James Spann: Rain is still possible in Alabama through Saturday
Radar scan: Rain continues to fall over Alabama this afternoon, and further east of I-65. Skies are generally cloudy with temperatures ranging between 77 and 84 degrees.
Skies will remain mostly cloudy across Alabama through Saturday with occasional showers, thanks to a nearby surface trough. Rainfall will be heaviest in the eastern half of the state, and there may be rumbles of thunder in some areas. It won’t be constant rain, and it won’t rain everywhere, but if you have something planned outside, be ready to shower at any time. Rainfall will be anywhere between 55-65% tonight and Saturday, with highs in the mid-80s.
The weather will be drier Sunday, but rain will still be possible in eastern and southern Alabama before a surface front passes through the state. Expect a mix of sun and clouds with a temperature between 81 and 85 degrees.
next week: Right now, most of the week looks dry with mostly sunny days and mild, pleasant nights. Highs will be in the 80s, lows in the 60s, but many North Alabama communities will likely reach the 50s early Monday and Tuesday morning.
Football weather: For tonight’s high school games, we have a risk of rain with temperatures dropping into the 70s.
On Saturday, Alabama travels to Tampa to take on South Florida (2:30 p.m. CT). The day will be hot and humid, with a high around 90 degrees. A rain or thunderstorm is possible during the game, which of course means the possibility of a lightning delay.
Auburn hosts Samford on Saturday at Jordan-Hare Stadium (6 p.m.). The sky will be cloudy in most areas, with the possibility of rain showers. Temperatures will be in the mid to upper 70s.
UAB will host Louisiana on Saturday at Protection Stadium in downtown Birmingham (6 p.m.). Showers during the match cannot be ruled out. Conditions will be mostly cloudy with temperatures dropping from around 80 at kickoff to the mid 70s by the fourth quarter.
Tropical regions: Hurricane Lee, with a wind speed of 80 mph, is located about 340 miles south/southeast of Nantucket and moving north at 16 mph. The system becomes extratropical over the next 24 hours as it gains latitude, and will move into western Nova Scotia on Saturday afternoon.
Tropical storm conditions and coastal flooding are expected to begin in southern New England this afternoon and spread northward along the New England coast and over parts of Atlantic Canada through Saturday. These conditions will likely result in downed trees and possible power outages.
Tropical Storm Margot is located in the Atlantic Ocean with winds of 65 mph. It will move slightly over the next five days as it weakens and will remain far from Earth.
Invest 97L in the mid-Atlantic is expected to become Tropical Storm Nigel over the next few days, but it will move north and pose no threat to land.
No tropical systems will threaten the Gulf of Mexico for at least the next seven to 10 days.
On this date in 1945: The hurricane entered the south Florida coast at Homestead, curved north across central Florida, stayed over land, and exited near Jacksonville Beach with winds of 170 mph.
On this date in 2004: Hurricane Ivan was approaching the Alabama Gulf Coast. It will make landfall before dawn on September 16. Ivan was a Category 3 storm when it moved up the coast with winds of 120 mph and a storm surge of 10 to 15 feet. The storm was responsible for the deaths of eight people in the western Florida Panhandle (seven in Escambia County and one in Santa Rosa County).
For more weather news and information from James Spann and his team, visit AlabamaWx.
