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 May 17, 1:50 PM CST, 2 hours 40 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 250 PM CDT MON MAY 17 2004 .SYNOPSIS...SEE NO REASON FOR ANY MAJOR CHANGES TO THE FORECAST... AFTERNOON SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS SHOULD OCCUR EACH AFTERNOON THROUGH THE WORK WEEK. ONE NOTEWORTHY FEATURE IS THE LOW PROGD TO DEVELOP IN THE NORTHWESTERN GULF. IF THIS FEATURE SETS UP FARTHER EAST...OR IS STRONGER...SEA BREEZE WOULD LIKELY GET A BIT OF A SOUTHERLY PUSH...POSSIBLY MAKING IT WELL INTO OUR SOUTHERN ZONES LATE IN THE WORK WEEK. OTHERWISE...JUST TYPICAL SUMMERTIME CONDITIONS. STILL EXPECTING UPPER 80S AREA WIDE LATE IN THE WEEK...LEVELING OUT OVER THE WEEKEND. CONSIDER GUIDANCE AROUND 3 DEGREES TOO COOL. && .SHORT TERM...CURRENT CONVECTION WILL CONTINUE THROUGH THE EARLY EVENING HOURS...SMALL HAIL AND LOCALLY GUSTY WINDS. LESS CLOUD COVERAGE EARLY TOMORROW SHOULD ALLOW TEMPERATURES TO EASILY CLIMB INTO THE MIDDLE 80S AGAIN. LOTS OF MOISTURE WILL KEEP TEMPS UP OVERNIGHT. TOMORROW...NOT EXPECTING AREA WIDE PRECIP...BUT NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE TO PINPOINT THIS HEAT INDUCED STUFF...GOING 40S AND 50S... HIGHEST SOUTH. && .LONG TERM...OTHER THAN ANY POSSIBLE INFLUENCE FROM THE LOW IN THE NW GULF...LOOKS LIKE A STRAIGHT FORWARD SUMMERTIME FORECAST. WARMING THROUGH THE WORK WEEK...AND LEVELING OFF OVER THE WEEKEND. && .PRELIMINARY NUMBERS... BIRMINGHAM 66 85 65 86 66 / 30 40 20 40 MONTGOMERY 66 87 65 88 66 / 30 40 20 50 && .BMX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...NONE. && 12
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 1244 PM CDT MON MAY 17 2004 ALZ011>015-017>050-172015- AUTAUGA-BARBOUR-BIBB-BLOUNT-BULLOCK-CALHOUN-CHAMBERS-CHEROKEE- CHILTON-CLAY-CLEBURNE-COOSA-DALLAS-ELMORE-ETOWAH-FAYETTE-GREENE-HALE- JEFFERSON-LAMAR-LEE-LOWNDES-MACON-MARENGO-MARION-MONTGOMERY-PERRY- PICKENS-PIKE-RANDOLPH-RUSSELL-SHELBY-ST CLAIR-SUMTER-TALLADEGA- TALLAPOOSA-TUSCALOOSA-WALKER-WINSTON- 1244 PM CDT MON MAY 17 2004 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE COUNTIES SERVED BY THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE IN BIRMINGHAM. .DAY ONE (THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT)... A MOIST AND UNSTABLE AIRMASS REMAINS ACROSS THE AREA. SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS CAN BE EXPECTED...MAINLY THIS AFTERNOON INTO THIS EVENING. SOME OF THESE STORMS WILL BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING WIND GUSTS TO 30 MPH...DANGEROUS CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING...AND BRIEF HEAVY DOWNPOURS. AT THIS TIME...THESE STORMS ARE EXPECTED TO REMAIN BELOW SEVERE LIMITS. THEREFORE...NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN (TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY) NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AND STORM SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED THROUGH TONIGHT.
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 155 PM CDT MON MAY 17 2004 ALZ027-028-171930- CLAY-TALLADEGA- 155 PM CDT MON MAY 17 2004 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT IN EFFECT FOR WESTERN CLAY AND TALLADEGA COUNTIES UNTIL 230 PM CDT... ...FREQUENT CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING IS POSSIBLE FROM AN APPROACHING THUNDERSTORM... ...SMALL HAIL IS POSSIBLE FROM AN APPROACHING THUNDERSTORM... AT 152 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A THUNDERSTORM 10 MILES SOUTHEAST OF WINTERBORO...MOVING NORTHWEST AT 10 TO 15 MPH. THIS THUNDERSTORM WILL AFFECT AREAS IN AND NEAR WALDO...SYLACAUGA... TALLADEGA AND WINTERBORO THROUGH 230 PM CDT. THE PRIMARY THREAT FROM THESE STORMS IS SMALL HAIL. HAIL UP TO ONE HALF INCH IN DIAMETER...IS POSSIBLE. IF YOU ARE OUTDOORS IN THE VICINITY OF THESE STORMS...TAKE SHELTER NOW. IN ADDITION...FREQUENT CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING IS POSSIBLE. LAT...LON 3316 8633 3314 8600 3335 8573 3347 8616
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 407 PM CDT MON MAY 17 2004 ALZ039-172145- MARENGO- 407 PM CDT MON MAY 17 2004 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT IN EFFECT FOR MARENGO COUNTY UNTIL 445 PM CDT... ...FREQUENT CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING AND SMALL HAIL IS POSSIBLE FROM AN APPROACHING THUNDERSTORM... AT 403 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A THUNDERSTORM OVER SWEET WATER...MOVING NORTH AT 15 MPH. THIS THUNDERSTORM WILL AFFECT AREAS IN AND NEAR SWEET WATER... MYRTLEWOOD...MAGNOLIA AND LINDEN THROUGH 445 PM CDT. THE PRIMARY THREAT FROM THESE STORMS IS SMALL HAIL. HAIL UP TO ONE HALF INCH IN DIAMETER...IS POSSIBLE. IF YOU ARE OUTDOORS IN THE VICINITY OF THESE STORMS...TAKE SHELTER NOW. LAT...LON 3201 8811 3200 8766 3221 8761 3236 8792
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 427 PM CDT MON MAY 17 2004 ALZ040-172215- DALLAS- 427 PM CDT MON MAY 17 2004 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT IN EFFECT FOR DALLAS COUNTY UNTIL 515 PM CDT... ...FREQUENT CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING AND SMALL HAIL IS POSSIBLE FROM AN APPROACHING THUNDERSTORM... AT 423 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A THUNDERSTORM 9 MILES SOUTH OF ORRVILLE...MOVING NORTH AT 15 MPH. THIS THUNDERSTORM WILL AFFECT AREAS IN AND NEAR ORRVILLE THROUGH 515 PM CDT. THE PRIMARY THREAT FROM THESE STORMS IS SMALL HAIL. HAIL UP TO ONE HALF INCH IN DIAMETER...IS POSSIBLE. IF YOU ARE OUTDOORS IN THE VICINITY OF THESE STORMS...TAKE SHELTER NOW. LAT...LON 3213 8738 3208 8711 3248 8705 3245 8741
The Birmingham radar (KBMX), 44 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 22:31 UTC.
1 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.
A Fire Station 31 firefighter was struck by lightning. He suffered only minor injuries that were not life threatening.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Alabama in 2004Every state in 2004This day in weather historyWarnings in Alabama, May 2004
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: 5401749.