A cold front pushing through the southeastern United States caused showers and thunderstorms across portions of Alabama during the early morning hours. A few of these storms became severe, producing large hail.
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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 BMX wrote it up.
A cold front pushing through the southeastern United States caused showers and thunderstorms across portions of Alabama during the early morning hours. A few of these storms became severe, producing large hail.
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 Apr 5, 3:34 AM CST, 1 hour 6 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 434 AM CDT SUN APR 5 2009 .DISCUSSION... WARM FRONTAL SURGE HAS CAUSED AN AREA OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS TO DEVELOP IN THE SOUTHWESTERN COUNTIES EARLY THIS MORNING. THE INSTABILITY ASSOCIATED WITH THESE STORMS IS ROOTED WELL ABOVE THE SURFACE...SO THE MAIN THREATS THEY WILL POSE ARE LIGHTNING AND PERHAPS SOME SMALL HAIL. COLD FRONT EARLY THIS MORNING WAS STILL WAY BACK IN OKLAHOMA AND TEXAS...AND IS NOT PROGGED TO REACH WEST CENTRAL ALABAMA UNTIL LATE THIS AFTERNOON OR EARLY THIS EVENING. THEREFORE...MUCH OF THE FORCING FOR PRECIPITATION UNTIL THIS AFTERNOON WILL CONTINUE TO BE ASSOCIATED WITH THE WARM FRONT. ONCE THE COLD FRONT ULTIMATELY REACHES US...IT SHOULD HELP SET OFF SCATTERED SURFACE-ROOTED CONVECTION. BEST RAIN CHANCES WILL BE ALONG AND AHEAD OF THE COLD FRONTAL POSITION DURING THE MOST UNSTABLE TIME OF THE DAY...WHICH IS ROUGHLY FROM I-65 EAST THIS EVENING. THERE IS A SMALL POTENTIAL FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS (WITH A WIND AND HAIL THREAT)...BUT THE THREAT IS MORE MARGINAL COMPARED TO RECENT EVENTS. STRONG COLD ADVECTION REALLY KICKS INTO HIGH GEAR ON MONDAY...IN THE WAKE OF TONIGHTS COLD FRONTAL PASSAGE. WIND SPEEDS WILL BE ONE ISSUE TO DEAL WITH ON MONDAY...MOST LIKELY IN THE FORM OF A LAKE WIND ADVISORY. MODELS STILL SHOW QUITE A BIT OF SHORTWAVE ENERGY ROTATING AROUND THE BASE OF THE EASTERN STATES LONGWAVE TROUGH...WITH WRAP-AROUND MOISTURE TEASING THE NORTHERN PORTIONS OF CENTRAL ALABAMA MONDAY AFTERNOON INTNFIDENCE IS INCREASING WITH EVERY MODEL RUN THAT A LARGE PORTION OF CENTRAL ALABAMA WILL EXPERIENCE AT LEAST ONE (IF NOT TWO) NIGHTS OF SUB-FREEZING WEATHER. WILL LIKELY NEED TO ISSUE A FREEZE WATCH AT SOME POINT OVER THE NEXT 24 HOURS. A MODERATING TREND FINALLY GET UNDERWAY WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON...AS SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE SHIFTS TO OUR SOUTHEAST AND LIGHT SOUTHERLY WINDS BRING SOME WARMTH BACK INTO THE REGION. THE NEXT POTENTIAL RAIN MAKER COMES IN THURSDAY NIGHT OR FRIDAY...IN THE FORM OF ANOTHER COLD FRONT. MEDIUM RANGE MODELS ARE IN GOOD AGREEMENT ON THE EXISTENCE OF THIS FEATURE...ALTHOUGH THERE ARE SOME TIMING ISSUES. MY BEST GUESS RIGHT NOW IS TO HEDGE THE FORECAST TOWARDS THE SLOWER ECMWF SOLUTION...WHICH DELAYS THE MOISTURE RETURN UNTIL THURSDAY NIGHT AND DOESNT BRING THE FRONT THROUGH UNTIL FRIDAY. BEYOND THAT...FORECAST CONFIDENCE REALLY DROPS AS MODELS HAVE A DIFFICULT TIME LOCKING ON TO THE STRENGTH...POSITION...AND TIMING OF THE NEXT UPPER LEVEL LOW EJECTING OUT OF THE SOUTHERN PLAINS. /61/ && .AVIATION...06Z TAF DISCUSSION. VFR CONDS THRU 11Z. SOUTHERLY FLOW WILL INCREASE AFTER MIDNIGHT AND LOW LEVEL MOISTURE WILL TRANSPORT RAPIDLY NORTHWARD BETWEEN 09Z AND 12Z. DID ADD TEMPO FOG FOR TOI AS DEWPOINT DEPRESSIONS KEEP DECREASING. ONCE THE LOW CLOUDS WORK IN THE FOG WILL DISSIPATE. WILL ALSO NEED TO WATCH TCL FOR LOCAL EFFECTS. EXPECT MVFR CIGS TO DEVELOP ACROSS WEST AND SOUTH ALABAMA BY 12Z AND ALL SITES BY 14Z. WENT AHEAD AND INCLUDED VCSH FOR TOI AND MGM WITH THE INCREASE IN CLOUD COVER AFTER 12Z...WITH TEMPO RA BETWEEN 15 AND 19Z AS THE MOISTURE LEVELS INCREASE OVER THE SOUTH. WITH THIS UPDATE ADDED CB GROUP IN FOR TOI AND MGM BETWEEN 15 AND 19Z. EXPECTED MAINLY RAIN BUT CAN NOT RULE OUT AN ISOLATED THUNDERSTORM. ADDED VCSH FOR THE NORTHERN TAFS AS WELL AS THE MOISTURE LIFTS NORTH MAINLY AFTER 13Z FOR TCL AND 15Z FOR EET. CONFIDENCE IS QUITE A BIT HIGHER FOR THE RAIN ACROSS MGM AND TOI...BUT NOT AS HIGH FOR NORTHERN TAFS. THE MAIN FRONT WILL BEGIN TO ENTER THE PICTURE AT THE END OF THE PERIOD. WENT AHEAD AND ADDED A WIND SHIFT IN AT TCL BY 3Z AND SLOWLY SHIFTED EAST. MAY NEED TO ADD CB GROUPS IN HERE IN THE FUTURE UPDATES. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... GADSDEN 74 44 49 29 46 / 30 60 20 10 10 ANNISTON 76 45 51 27 48 / 30 70 10 10 10 BIRMINGHAM 74 43 51 30 49 / 30 60 10 10 0 TUSCALOOSA 76 44 53 31 52 / 30 50 10 0 0 CALERA 74 45 51 32 49 / 40 60 10 10 0 AUBURN 79 49 51 25 51 / 50 60 10 10 10 MONTGOMERY 80 48 56 34 54 / 50 50 10 0 10 TROY 79 53 57 31 53 / 50 50 0 0 10 && .BMX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...NONE. &&
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 700 PM CDT SAT APR 4 2009 ALZ011>015-017>050-050600- 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- 700 PM CDT SAT APR 4 2009 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE COUNTIES SERVED BY THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE IN BIRMINGHAM. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT. NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY. A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE ON SUNDAY AFTERNOON... LASTING INTO THE OVERNIGHT HOURS. THE MAIN THREAT WITH THESE STORMS WILL BE LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS. COLD TEMPERATURES ARE EXPECTED EARLY NEXT WEEK. TEMPERATURES COULD FALL BELOW FREEZING ACROSS MOST OF CENTRAL ALABAMA MONDAY NIGHT INTO TUESDAY MORNING. FREEZING TEMPERATURES ARE ALSO POSSIBLE ON WEDNESDAY MORNING. A STRONG PRESSURE GRADIENT WILL PRODUCE BRISK NORTH WINDS ON BOTH MONDAY AND TUESDAY. STRONG THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE ON THURSDAY AFTERNOON AND THURSDAY NIGHT. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... ACTIVATION OF STORM SPOTTERS AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT MAY BE NEEDED ON SUNDAY.
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 508 AM CDT SUN APR 5 2009 ALZ032-033-039-040-051100- DALLAS-HALE-MARENGO-PERRY- 508 AM CDT SUN APR 5 2009 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT FOR DALLAS...HALE...MARENGO AND PERRY COUNTIES UNTIL 600 AM CDT... AT 506 AM CDT...THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IS TRACKING A STRONG THUNDERSTORM NEAR DAYTON...OR 9 MILES NORTHEAST OF LINDEN...MOVING EAST AT 40 MPH. PEA SIZE HAIL AND WINDS UP TO 40 MPH ARE EXPECTED WITH THIS STORM. * LOCATIONS IN OR NEAR THE PATH INCLUDE... DAYTON. FAUNSDALE. UNIONTOWN. MARION JUNCTION. HAMBURG. SUTTLE. STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO...COMMERCIAL RADIO...OR YOUR LOCAL TELEVISION STATIONS FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS CONCERNING THIS WEATHER SITUATION. 27
The Birmingham radar (KBMX), 83 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 10:39 UTC.
2 hail, 1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
A few trees were blown down north of Selma.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Alabama in 2009Every state in 2009This day in weather historyWarnings in Alabama, April 2009
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: 163469, 163467, 163468.