1 lightning, as filed by the National Weather Service.
Every event with a place to put it; 1 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Birmingham, AL wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Sep 20, 1:47 PM CST, 5 hours 48 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM, AL 247 PM CDT FRI SEP 20 2002 SURFACE COLD FRONT EXTENDING ACROSS WESTERN TN, AR AND LA SLOWLY MOVING TO THE SOUTHEAST. CONVECTION FIRING ALONG AND AHEAD OF FRONT...WHERE GOOD MOISTURE PRESENT. THE SURFACE FRONT WILL MOVE INTO NORTHWEST ALABAMA TOWARD SUNSET...THEN STALL SOMEWHERE ACROSS NORTHEAST ALABAMA EARLY SATURDAY MORNING. MUCH OF THE ENERGY PULLS NORTH...BUT WILL CONTINUE CHANCE POPS ACROSS EASTERN AND CENTRAL AREAS...WHERE GOOD MOISTURE EVIDENT...UNTIL UPPER SHORT WAVE PUSHES FRONT THROUGH ON SUNDAY NIGHT. FORECAST FOR NEXT WEEK CONTINGENT UPON WHETHER ISIDORE AFFECTS GULF COAST...AND MODELS ALL DIFFER ON SOLUTION. FOR NOW WILL BROADBRUSH CHANCE POPS ACROSS AREA WEDNESDAY THROUGH FRIDAY. HSV 070/087 066/084 062 7432 BHM 073/086 070/085 064 7544 MGM 071/087 070/087 065 6544 .BHM...NONE. 83
ALZ001>050-202200- HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDTAED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 306 PM CDT FRI SEP 20 2002 HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK FOR NORTH AND CENTRAL ALABAMA. A COLD FRONT PUSHING INTO THE LOWER MISSISSIPPI VALLEY WILL HELP TO SET OFF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS THE REGION THROUGH TONIGHT. DUE TO THE AMOUNT OF INSTABILITY AND WIND SHEAR PRESENT... THERE IS A CHANCE THAT SOME THUNDERSTORMS MAY GROW STRONG ENOUGH TO PRODUCE STRONG OR DAMAGING WINDS. THE AREAS WITH THE BEST CHANCE OF EXPERIENCING THESE THUNDERSTORMS ARE NORTHERN AND NORTHWEST ALABAMA...FROM THE CITIES OF BRIDGEPORT... CULLMAN...JASPER...AND CARROLLTON...NORTH AND WEST. THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS PLACED THIS PART OF ALABAMA UNDER A SLIGHT RISK FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS THROUGH TONIGHT. THE PRIMARY THREAT FROM THESE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE DAMAGING STRAIGHT LINE WINDS. THE PRIMARY THREAT TIME FOR ALL THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE AFTER 4 PM UNTIL AROUND MIDNIGHT...WITH THE EARLIER TIMES MORE LIKELY FOR THE WESTERN PORTIONS OF THE STATE...AND THE LATER TIMES FOR THE EASTERN PORTION OF THE STATE. EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT PERSONNEL AND STORM SPOTTER GROUPS SHOULD MONITOR THE LATEST WEATHER CONDITIONS AND BE READY FOR POSSIBLE ACTIVATION THROUGH TONIGHT.
ALZ001>018-020-210300- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM ALABAMA 748 PM CDT FRI SEP 20 2002 THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES HAVE BEEN REMOVED FROM SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH NUMBER 698... COLBERT...FRANKLIN...LAMAR...LAUDERDALE...MARION... THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES REMAIN IN SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH NUMBER 698 WHICH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 1000 PM... BLOUNT...CHEROKEE...CULLMAN...DEKALB...ETOWAH... FAYETTE...JACKSON...LAWRENCE...LIMESTONE...MADISON... MARSHALL...MORGAN...WALKER...WINSTON...
The Birmingham radar (KBMX), 107 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 01:34 UTC.
1 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.
One person was struck by lightning at Cold Springs High School. The extent of injuries was unknown.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Alabama in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in Alabama, September 2002
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5315749.