1 thunderstorm wind, as filed by the National Weather Service.
Every event with a place to put it. 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 Nov 24, 5:45 AM CST, 1 hour 38 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 545 AM CST WED NOV 24 2004 ...UPDATE...WILL UPDATE ZONES TO REFLECT THE ISSUANCE OF THE TORNADO WATCH 897...THE EXPIRATION OF TORNADO WATCH 895...AND TO CLEAR BLOUNT...JEFFERSON...WALKER...FAYETTE...AND TUSCALOOSA FROM TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 896. && .BMX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...TORNADO WATCH IN EFFECT FOR EASTERN AND CENTRAL PORTIONS UNTIL 9 AM CST TODAY...TORNADO WATCH IN EFFECT FOR SOUTHEAST COUNTIES UNTIL 11 AM CST TODAY...FLOOD WATCH IN EFFECT FOR ALL BUT SOUTHEAST COUNTIES THROUGH 6 PM CST TODAY. && 02 JBW
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 1130 PM CST TUE NOV 23 2004 ALZ011>015-017>050-241300- 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- 1130 PM CST TUE NOV 23 2004 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE COUNTIES SERVED BY THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE IN BIRMINGHAM. .DAY ONE...(OVERNIGHT) A STRONG COLD FRONT WILL MOVE TOWARDS CENTRAL ALABAMA BRINGING A LINE OF STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS TO THE AREA OVERNIGHT. AS THE COLD FRONT AND UPPER LEVEL SYSTEM MOVE CLOSER TO THE STATE...SEVERAL FACTORS WILL COME TOGETHER TO BRING A THREAT OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING TORNADOES TO CENTRAL ALABAMA. INCREASING WIND PROFILES AND UPPER LEVEL FORCING...ALONG WITH AN UNSTABLE AIR MASS...WILL RESULT IN A SQUALL LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS FORMING...WITH ISOLATED SUPERCELL THUNDERSTORMS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING TORNADOES. THIS LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS WILL MOVE INTO THE STATE AROUND 2AM AND BE NEAR THE BIRMINGHAM METRO AREA AROUND 5 AM AND THEN ACROSS EAST ALABAMA AROUND 7AM. IN ADDITION TO THE THREAT FOR TORNADOES AND STRONG GUSTY WINDS...HEAVY RAIN IS POSSIBLE. WITH MANY LOCATIONS ALONG AND NORTH OF INTERSTATE 20 HAVING RECEIVED 2 TO 4 INCHES OF RAIN ALREADY...ANY ADDITIONAL HEAVY RAIN WILL RESULT IN FLASH FLOODING. A FLOOD WATCH WILL BE REISSUED TONIGHT FOR ALL BUT THE SOUTHEASTERN QUADRANT OF THE FORECAST AREA. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...(WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY) STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE IN PROGRESS WEDNESDAY MORNING AS THE SQUALL LINE TRACKS THROUGH CENTRAL ALABAMA...AND EXITS THE SOUTHEASTERN CORNER OF THE FORECAST AREA BY THE AFTERNOON HOURS ON WEDNESDAY. OTHERWISE NO OTHER HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... STORM SPOTTER AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUIRED TONIGHT AND WEDNESDAY MORNING.
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM ALABAMA
548 AM CDT WED NOV 24 2004
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION...ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0210 WIND DAMAGE CEDAR BLUFF
11/24 PWR LNS DWN CHEROKEE
&&SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 602 AM CST WED NOV 24 2004 ALZ013-015-017-023-024-241235- BLOUNT AL-FAYETTE AL-JEFFERSON AL-TUSCALOOSA AL-WALKER AL- TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 896 HAS BEEN CANCELED FOR THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES: BLOUNT...FAYETTE...JEFFERSON...TUSCALOOSA...WALKER...
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 714 AM CST WED NOV 24 2004 ALZ044>046-241345- BULLOCK-MACON-MONTGOMERY- 714 AM CST WED NOV 24 2004 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT IN EFFECT FOR BULLOCK...MONTGOMERY AND MACON COUNTIES UNTIL 745 AM CST... ...WINDS 35 TO 45 MILES AN HOUR ARE POSSIBLE FROM APPROACHING THUNDERSTORMS... ...TORNADO WATCH IN EFFECT UNTIL 11 AM CST... AT 710 AM CST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS FROM 8 MILES NORTHWEST OF MOUNT MEIGS TO 10 MILES WEST OF GRADY...MOVING EAST AT 50 MPH. THESE SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL AFFECT AREAS IN AND NEAR SPRAGUE...MOUNT MEIGS...GRADY...CARTERS HILL...SHORTER...MATHEWS... PINE LEVEL AND MILSTEAD THROUGH 745 AM CST.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
A few trees and power lines were blown down near Pike Road. Two homes also sustained minor damage. This storm went on to produce a tornado minutes later just to the east.
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, November 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: 5425993.