A slow moving frontal boundary pushed east across northern Alabama on October 8th, 2008. Strong southerly winds from the Gulf of Mexico ahead of the front allowed dewpoints to climb to near 65 degrees.
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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 episode as NWS HUN wrote it up.
A slow moving frontal boundary pushed east across northern Alabama on October 8th, 2008. Strong southerly winds from the Gulf of Mexico ahead of the front allowed dewpoints to climb to near 65 degrees. This abundant moisture combined with potent lift (enhanced by a strong wave of low pressure developing along the front) and produced very heavy rainfall and flash flooding in portions of Marshall and Madison counties in northern Alabama. A few isolated severe storms produced straight lined wind damage as well.
The Northeast Alabama radar (KHTX), 65 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 05:16 UTC.
3 heavy rain, 1 lightning, 1 thunderstorm wind, 1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
A COCORAHS observer measured 4.11 inches of rainfall in 24 hours. Flash flooding was observed along nearby Knox Creek.
Two to four inches of rain fell within the Mill Creek Basin in Madison. Mill Road was closed for a short time due to flash flooding with several inches of water over the road.
A rain gauge situated along Pinhook Creek at Clinton Avenue in Huntsville measured 4.93 inches of rain in less than 12 hours.|Areal rainfall in the Huntsville metro area resulted in significant ponding of water on city and residential streets.
Huntsville utilities reported that lightning caused a power outage in northeast Huntsville affecting 2000 customers. The outage occurred for about 2 hours.
Severe thunderstorm winds knocked down a large tree onto the intersection of Governor's Drive and California street. The tree knocked down a few power lines, which shorted a transformer. This sparked a fire. Power was out in portions of the Medical district for a short time.
Intense rainfall produced flash flooding in many locations in the Monrovia and Madison communities. Hardest hit areas were along Knox Creek, Jeff Road in Monrovia, and Mill Road in Madison. High water along Knox Creek flooded garages of up to 5 homes on Tobacco road and Blueberry Dr. Portions of Mill road near Madison City Public Works Department were closed due to flash flooding. Also, along Indian Creek in the Monrovia area, water came up to people's doorsteps along Jeff Road. Flash flooding was also reported on Sanderson Road.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Alabama in 2008Every state in 2008This day in weather historyWarnings in Alabama, October 2008
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 2026-09-30. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 137981, 137982, 138242, 138243, 138249, 137980.