2 flash flood, 2 thunderstorm wind, as filed by the National Weather Service.
Every event with a place to put it; 2 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 Huntsville, AL wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 6, 1:45 AM CST, 6 hours 25 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HUNTSVILLE AL 245 AM CDT WED AUG 6 2003 VERY LITTLE CHANGE IN UPPER LEVEL FLOW THIS MORNING...AS DEEP UPPER TROUGH REMAINS ANCHORED FROM OHIO VALLEY TO THE CAROLINAS...WITH BROAD RIDGING ENCOMPASSING MUCH OF THE WESTERN US. CHECK OF LATEST REGIONAL RADARS SHOWING MAIN CONVECTIVE ACTIVITY STAYING JUST TO OUR SOUTH ACROSS THE BHM AREA...WITH ADDITIONAL TSTM COMPLEXES ACROSS ARKANSAS AND THE MISSOURI BOOTHEEL. AREA OF MID LEVEL CLOUDINESS ACROSS THE TN VALLEY HAS HELPED TO KEEP FOG DEVELOPMENT IN CHECK THUS FAR. HOWEVER...SEEING SOME THINNING TO THE NORTH...SO MAY STILL SEE SOME PATCHY FOG...ESPECIALLY ACROSS THE MORE SATURATED WESTERN AREAS. NOT MUCH HAS CHANGED FOR TODAY AS TN VALLEY REMAINS UNDER NW FLOW ALOFT...WITH IMPULSES EMBEDDED WITHIN THE FLOW POTENTIALLY BRINGING ANOTHER ROUND OR TWO OF SCTD SHRA/TSTMS TODAY INTO TONIGHT. INITIAL THINKING IS FOR MID RANGE CHC POPS...WITH MAIN CONVECTIVE FOCUS (AT LEAST THIS MORNING) STAYING TO OUR SOUTH AND WEST. PARTLY SUNNY WORDING SHOULD SUFFICE GIVEN THE MODEST MID LEVEL MOISTURE. CLOUD COVER WILL ONCE AGAIN CUT INTO DAYTIME TEMPERATURES...AS HIGHS STAY 3-6 DEGREES BELOW NORM. EASTERN TROUGH DEEPENS BY THURSDAY...DRAGGING A RATHER DIFFUSE FRONTAL BOUNDARY SLOWLY INTO THE AREA. MAY STILL SEE ONE LAST TSTM COMPLEX ON THU...SO WILL CONTINUE WITH SLT CHC POPS. FRONTAL BOUNDARY WILL SAG SOUTHWARD BY THU NGT...WITH SFC HIGH PRESSURE BUILDING ACROSS THE UPPER MS VALLEY. DEVELOPING NORTHERLY LOW LEVEL FLOW...ALONG WITH DECREASING MID/LOW LEVEL MOISTURE WILL LEAD TO SLIGHTLY COOLER TEMPS FOR THU NGT. FRIDAY THROUGH SUNDAY STILL LOOKING DRY AS UPPER RIDGE SHIFTS EAST JUST ENOUGH TO KEEP THE MAIN PCPN AXIS TO THE SOUTH AND EAST. SINCE U/L FLOW STILL NORTHWESTERLY...CANT RULE OUT AN ISLTD TSTM...BUT AREAL COVERAGE SHOULD REMAIN 10% OR LESS. TEMPERATURES WILL REMAIN NEAR TO SLIGHTLY BELOW NORMAL. LATEST GFS SHOWING H50 LOW EJECTING SOUTHEAST OUT OF THE UPPER MS VALLEY...HEADING TOWARD THE AREA SOMETIME EARLY NEXT WEEK. CANADIAN/ECMWF NOT IN AGREEMENT IN TIMING AND STRETCH OF THIS SYSTEM...SO PRECIP CHANCES STILL QUESTIONABLE. NONETHELESS...WILL INTRODUCE A SLIGHT CHC POPS FOR MONDAY AND TUESDAY AS UPPER RIDGE SHOULD BEGIN TO RETROGRADE WESTWARD...PUTTING THE TN VALLEY BACK IN THE PATH OF UPPER LEVEL IMPULSES WITHIN THE NORTHWESTERLY FLOW ALOFT. .PRELIM NUMBERS... HUNTSVILLE 86/70 87/67 87 43211 SHOALS 86/69 88/67 87 43211 FT PAYNE 86/68 87/66 87 43211 CULLMAN 88/71 89/68 88 43211 .HUN...NONE. MR
ALZ001>010-016-061800- HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HUNTSVILLE AL 500 AM CDT WED AUG 6 2003 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTH ALABAMA. .DAY ONE...(TODAY AND TONIGHT)... ANOTHER UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE WILL APPROACH NORTH ALABAMA THIS MORNING. SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL ONCE AGAIN DEVELOP ACROSS THE AREA TODAY. THE OVERALL THREAT FOR SEVERE WEATHER IS RELATIVELY LOW. HOWEVER...ANY THUNDERSTORM THAT DOES DEVELOP WILL HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO PRODUCE A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING ALONG WITH BRIEF BUT VERY INTENSE DOWNPOURS. THE SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL BEGIN TO DISSIPATE AFTER SUNSET THIS EVENING. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...(THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY)... ISOLATED AFTERNOON THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE ON THURSDAY...BUT THEN DRIER AND MORE STABLE CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED INTO THE WEEKEND. .SPOTTER CALL TO ACTION STATEMENT... ACTIVATION OF STORM SPOTTERS AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT PERSONNEL IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. 09
ALZ001>004-061400- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HUNTSVILLE AL 654 AM CDT WED AUG 6 2003 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT FOR INTENSE LIGHTNING AND VERY HEAVY RAINFALL... A CLUSTER OF STRONG THUNDERSTORMS OVER NORTHEAST MISSISSIPPI WILL MOVE SLOWLY EAST INTO LAUDERDALE...COLBERT...FRANKLIN...AND LAWRENCE COUNTIES THROUGH 9 AM. WIND GUSTS TO 35 MPH AND VERY HEAVY RAIN WILL ACCOMPANY THE STORMS. RAINFALL AMOUNTS OF ONE TO TWO INCHES ARE EXPECTED. IN ADDITION...THE THUNDERSTORMS WILL PRODUCE VERY INTENSE CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING. MORNING COMMUTERS SHOULD BE PREPARED TO ENCOUNTER REDUCED VISIBILITES AND PONDING OF WATER ON ROADWAYS. 09
ALZ005-006-061500- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HUNTSVILLE AL 900 AM CDT WED AUG 6 2003 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT FOR STRONG THUNDERSTORMS AND VERY HEAVY RAINFALL... A CLUSTER OF STRONG THUNDERSTORMS OVER EASTERN LIMESTONE AND WESTERN MADISON COUNTY WILL MOVE SOUTHEAST AROUND 20 MPH. LOCATIONS AFFECTED THROUGH 10 AM WILL BE ATHENS...HUNTSVILLE AND HAZEL GREEN. WIND GUSTS TO 35 MPH AND VERY HEAVY RAIN WILL ACCOMPANY THE STORMS. RAINFALL AMOUNTS OF ONE TO TWO INCHES WILL BE POSSIBLE. IN ADDITION...THE THUNDERSTORMS WILL PRODUCE VERY INTENSE CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING. MORNING COMMUTERS SHOULD BE PREPARED TO ENCOUNTER REDUCED VISIBILITES AND PONDING OF WATER ON ROADWAYS. SHUMWAY
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
2 flash flood, 2 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
county road 31 closed due to flash flooding.
numerous trees down and tree fell on a garage.
a few trees down.
water over road along highway 17.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Alabama in 2003Every state in 2003This day in weather historyWarnings in Alabama, August 2003
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: 5330469, 5330471, 5330472, 5330470.