Alabama, 2005

Hail in Alabama, March 30, 2005

March 30, 2005 · NWS BMX · 1 event in 1 county or zone

1 hail, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
1

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.

What forecasters said that day

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 Mar 30, 3:30 PM CST, 7 hours 30 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Mar 30, 3:30 PM CST, 7 hours 30 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
330 PM CST WED MAR 30 2005

.DISCUSSION...
SHORT WAVE TROUGH OVER THE MIDWEST STATES WILL LIFT NORTHEAST AND
PUSH A WEAK FRONTAL BOUNDARY INTO NORTHWEST ALABAMA.  SCATTERED
SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS EXPECTED TO DEVELOP AHEAD OF THE FRONT
LATE TONIGHT OVER WEST ALABAMA AND SPREAD EASTWARD.  VORT MAX WILL
PASS OVER ALABAMA ON THURSDAY AND PUSH SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS
INTO GEORGIA THURSDAY AFTERNOON.  SHOULD BE A BREAK IN THE
PRECIPITATION THURSDAY EVENING AS SURFACE LOW DEEPENS TO THE WEST
OF ALABAMA.  CONVECTION WILL SPREAD BACK INTO ALABAMA LATE
THURSDAY NIGHT AS SURFACE LOW TRACKS NORTHEASTWARD ACROSS THE
AREA.  UPPER TROUGH WILL PASS EAST OF THE AREA FRIDAY NIGHT, AND
COOLER AND DRIER CONDITIONS WILL RETURN IN TIME FOR THE WEEKEND.

.SHORT TERM...(TONIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY)
LOW LEVEL MOISTURE IS INCREASING RAPIDLY OVER THE AREA WITH
DEWPOINTS CLIMBING INTO THE LOWER 60S IN SOUTHWEST ALABAMA.
JACKSON 18Z UPPER AIR SOUNDING SHOWS A STRONG CAP AT 850MB WHICH
IS SUPPRESSING CONVECTIVE ACTIVITY.  STORM PREDICTION CENTER IS
FORECASTING CAP TO ERODE LATER TONIGHT WITH STRONG TO SEVERE
THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING OVER NORTHERN MISSISSIPPI AND SPREADING
INTO WESTERN ALABAMA AFTER MIDNIGHT.  FORECAST SOUNDINGS FROM THE
ETA SHOW CAPE VALUES APPROACHING 1000 J/KG BY 12Z THURSDAY.  WIND
PROFILES ALSO INDICATE SHEAR WILL BE SUFFICIENT FOR ISOLATED
SUPERCELLS.  SHORT WAVE TROUGH WILL PASS EAST OF THE AREA ON
THURSDAY AFTERNOON, AND CONVECTION SHOULD DECREASE AS THE
AFTERNOON PROGRESSES.  PW VALUES WILL DECREASE THURSDAY AFTERNOON
AND EVENING AS DRY AIR ADVECTS INTO THE MID LEVELS.  THE AIRMASS
WILL LIKELY BE CAPPED THROUGH THURSDAY EVENING UNTIL DEEPER
MOISTURE MOVES BACK INTO THE AREA AS MAIN UPPER TROUGH APPROACHES
FROM THE WEST.  DEEPENING SURFACE LOW WILL PROVIDE FAVORABLE
CONDITIONS FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS THE ENTIRE CWA LATE
THURSDAY NIGHT THROUGH EARLY AFTERNOON FRIDAY.  PW VALUES APPROACH
1.5 INCHES EARLY FRIDAY MORNING, AND THERE WILL BE A THREAT OF
HEAVY RAINFALL AND FLASH FLOODING.  SURFACE LOW AND ASSOCIATED
FRONT WILL EXIT ALABAMA FRIDAY AFTERNOON AND BRING AN END TO THE
CONVECTION.  GIVEN STRENGTH OF UPPER TROUGH, THERE WILL LIKELY BE
SOME WRAP-AROUND MOISTURE ACROSS NORTH ALABAMA FRIDAY EVENING.
CLOUDS WILL BEGIN TO DECREASE ACROSS THE AREA FROM THE SOUTHWEST
STARTING LATE FRIDAY NIGHT WITH CLEARING SKIES ACROSS THE
REMAINDER OF THE AREA SATURDAY MORNING.

.LONG TERM...(SUNDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY)
SURFACE HIGH WILL BUILD INTO THE AREA ON SUNDAY WITH SEASONAL
TEMPERATURES EXPECTED.  SURFACE RIDGE WILL MOVE EASTWARD, AND
SOUTHERLY FLOW WILL RETURN MONDAY AND TUESDAY.  THE NEXT SYSTEM IS
EXPECTED TO APPROACH ALABAMA ON WEDNESDAY.  SYSTEM LOOKS STRONG
ENOUGH TO PRODUCE THUNDERSTORMS.

&&

.PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS...
GADSDEN     60  74  61  69 /  60  50  50  70
ANNISTON    60  74  61  70 /  60  60  50  80
BIRMINGHAM  63  74  63  69 /  60  50  70  60
TUSCALOOSA  63  75  64  70 /  60  50  70  60
CALERA      63  75  64  71 /  60  50  70  70
AUBURN      60  77  61  74 /  50  70  50  80
MONTGOMERY  63  77  64  76 /  60  60  50  80
TROY        60  77  64  77 /  40  70  50  80

&&

.BMX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...NONE.

&&

58/92

In the hours before

Local storm report, Mar 30, 10:01 PM CST, 59 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
1001 PM CST WED MAR 30 2005

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0915 PM     HAIL             6 W NORTHPORT           33.24N 87.70W
03/30/2005  1.75 INCH        TUSCALOOSA         AL   AMATEUR RADIO

0927 PM     HAIL             NORTHPORT               33.24N 87.59W
03/30/2005  1.00 INCH        TUSCALOOSA         AL   PUBLIC

0937 PM     HAIL             11 E TUSCALOOSA         33.24N 87.35W
03/30/2005  0.88 INCH        TUSCALOOSA         AL   EMERGENCY MNGR

            COALING AL

&&

81/JD
Local storm report, Mar 30, 10:13 PM CST, 47 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
1013 PM CST WED MAR 30 2005

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

1004 PM     HAIL             HUEYTOWN                33.44N 87.00W
03/30/2005  1.00 INCH        JEFFERSON          AL   EMERGENCY MNGR

1009 PM     HAIL             6 NE SUMITON            33.81N 86.97W
03/30/2005  1.00 INCH        WALKER             AL   AMATEUR RADIO

            HAIL BREAKING WINDSHIELDS IN EMPIRE

&&

81/JD
Local storm report, Mar 30, 10:38 PM CST, 22 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
1038 PM CST WED MAR 30 2005

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

1005 PM     HAIL             4 W BIRMINGHAM          33.53N 86.87W
03/30/2005  1.00 INCH        JEFFERSON          AL   PUBLIC

            NICKEL TO QUARTER SIZE HAIL REPORTED

1015 PM     HAIL             BIRMINGHAM              33.53N 86.80W
03/30/2005  0.75 INCH        JEFFERSON          AL   AMATEUR RADIO

            PENNY HAIL REPORTED AT LEGION FIELD

1025 PM     HAIL             TRUSSVILLE              33.64N 86.59W
03/30/2005  1.00 INCH        JEFFERSON          AL   PUBLIC

            QUARTER SIZE HAIL REPORTED ON JANA ROAD

&&

81/JD
Local storm report, Mar 30, 10:40 PM CST, 20 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
1040 PM CST WED MAR 30 2005

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

1025 PM     HAIL             7 W HAYDEN              33.90N 86.88W
03/30/2005  1.00 INCH        BLOUNT             AL   PUBLIC

            AT EXIT 289 ON INTERSTATE 65

&&

81/JD
Local storm report, Mar 30, 10:53 PM CST, 7 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
1053 PM CST WED MAR 30 2005

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

1044 PM     HAIL             MOODY                   33.60N 86.49W
03/30/2005  0.88 INCH        ST. CLAIR          AL   PUBLIC

1044 PM     HAIL             BLOUNTSVILLE            34.08N 86.59W
03/30/2005  1.75 INCH        BLOUNT             AL   LAW ENFORCEMENT

&&

81/JD

The radar

The Northeast Alabama radar (KHTX), 109 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 04:57 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 hail. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Etowah

When
March 30, 11:00 PM CST
Where
Etowah County, Rainbow City
Measured
1 in hail
Reported by
GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates
33.950, -86.033

Quarter or larger size hail was observed near Rainbow City.

What these are

Hail
Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Alabama in 2005Every state in 2005This day in weather historyWarnings in Alabama, March 2005

Sources

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: 5445351.