A slow moving cold front pushing through the southeastern United States brought several days of thunderstorms. A few of the storms produced large hail, damaging winds, and locally heavy rainfall.
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 episode as NWS BMX wrote it up.
A slow moving cold front pushing through the southeastern United States brought several days of thunderstorms. A few of the storms produced large hail, damaging winds, and locally heavy rainfall.
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 Sep 23, 6:10 PM CST, 1 hour 12 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 710 PM CDT WED SEP 23 2009 .UPDATE...FOR AVIATION. .SHORT TERM...TONIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY. TALKED IN THE MORNING DISCUSSION ABOUT HAVING TO BACK OFF ON POPS TODAY AND TONIGHT...AND I DID DO THAT. THE HIGH PRESSURE THAT HAS MOVED INTO THE NORTHERN GULF STATES FROM THE WESTERN ATLANTIC HAS REALLY HELD OFF ANY RAIN CHANCES TODAY...AND WILL LIKELY DO SO AGAIN TOMORROW AS SUBSIDENCE ALOFT REMAINS THE LIMITING FACTOR TO SEEING PRECIPITATION. DECIDED TO LOWER POPS AGAIN FOR THURSDAY AS THE HIGH PRESSURE LOOKS TO PERSIST THROUGH THE DAY. THERE WILL STILL BE A CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS THE EXTREME WESTERN COUNTIES OF OUR CWA AS A COUPLE OF SHORTWAVES RIPPLE ALONG THE SOUTHWESTERLY UPPER LEVEL FLOW. THE MAJORITY OF THESE STORMS SHOULD REMAIN IN MISSISSIPPI...BUT THAT DOES NOT MEAN ALL OF THE MOISTURE HAS BEEN WRUNG OUT OF THE ATMOSPHERE. DEW POINTS WILL REMAIN ELEVATED AND THERE IS THE CHANCE THAT SOME PRECIP FALLS DUE TO AN OUTFLOW BOUNDARY MOVING IN FROM THE WEST...BUT THIS WILL BE LESS LIKELY THE CLOSER YOU GET TO THE INTERSTATE 65 CORRIDOR...AND EVEN LESS LIKELY EAST OF 65. CLOUDS SHOULD BE THIN IN THE MORNING...AND FILL IN WITH CU AGAIN DURING THE AFTERNOON AS THE CONVECTIVE TEMPERATURE IS REACHED. HIGH TEMPERATURES COULD JUMP UP A COUPLE OF DEGREES AS WELL...AS THE AXIS OF THE UPPER LEVEL RIDGE SETS UP OVER THE STATE. ONLY TALKING A COUPLE OF DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL...WHICH MEANS MAYBE A READING OF 90 IN OUR SOUTHERN COUNTIES. .LONG TERM...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY. FRIDAY SHOULD REMAIN THE TRANSITION DAY BACK INTO A WET PATTERN FOR A COUPLE OF DAYS. MODELS HAVE BEEN VERY CONSISTENT WITH THE RIDGE BREAKING DOWN OVER THE SOUTHEAST AS THE HIGHLY ADVERTISED UPPER LEVEL CLOSED LOW STARTS TO LIFT OUT OF THE CENTER OF THE COUNTRY AND PUSH EASTWARD. WITH PLENTY OF MOISTURE IN PLACE...RAIN CHANCES WILL BE ON THE INCREASE FRIDAY AFTERNOON AND INTO THE EVENING AS THIS LOW CLOSES IN ON CENTRAL ALABAMA. WILL HAVE TO CONTINUE TO WATCH AS THE ASSOCIATED BOUNDARY MOVES INTO THE AREA ON SATURDAY. FOR NOW...THE FRONT DOES NOT LOOK LIKE MUCH. MOST IF NOT ALL OF THE UPPER LEVEL DYNAMICS THAT WOULD AID IN THE FORMATION OF SEVERE WEATHER REMAIN TO THE NORTH AND BEHIND THE ACTUAL FRONT. ANOTHER LIMITING FACTOR... WHAT IS PROGGED TO COME INTO CENTRAL ALABAMA ON SATURDAY IS A PREFRONTAL TROUGH. THIS MEANS NOT MUCH IN THE WAY OF SURFACE CONVERGENCE WHICH REDUCES THE CHANCES OF GETTING ANY INTENSE ROTATING UPDRAFTS TO FORM. THIS ISNT TO SAY THAT THUNDERSTORMS WILL NOT FORM...SO WITH PLENTY OF OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES SCHEDULED AROUND THE STATE THIS WEEKEND...THIS NEEDS TO BE MONITORED. CHECK BACK WITH US OVER THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS FOR THE LATEST ON YOUR FORECAST. THE REST OF THE FORECAST IS FILLED WITH GOOD NEWS AS IT LOOKS LIKE DRY AIR WILL QUICKLY BE FILTERING IN FROM THE NORTH BEGINNING MONDAY NIGHT AND TUESDAY DURING THE DAY. AUTUMN-LIKE TEMPERATURES WILL FINALLY COME TO CENTRAL ALABAMA BY THIS TIME NEXT WEEK. THE ONLY OTHER CONCERN TO ADDRESS IS THE RIVER FLOODING AROUND THE AREA...SPECIFICALLY IN THE SOUTHWESTERN COUNTIES. WITH THE LACK OF RAIN OVER THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS...IT LOOKS LIKE ELEVATED RIVER LEVELS SHOULD START TO RECEDE...IF THEY HAVENT ALREADY...AND EVEN WITH SHOWERS MOVING BACK INTO THE STATE ON FRIDAY...THERE SHOULD BE ENOUGH OF A LULL TO ELIMINATE ANY FLOODING CONCERNS...RIVER OR OTHERWISE. && .AVIATION...00Z TAF DISCUSSION. LOOKING FOR LIGHT WINDS TONIGHT TO CONTINUE. SOME MINOR BR ALONG WITH LOW STRATUS WILL FILTER IN FROM THE EAST LATE TONIGHT INTO THE MORNING HOURS WITH CONTINUED GOOD LOW LEVEL MOISTURE. ANY STORMS SHOULD BE ISOLATED AT BEST TONIGHT AT TERMINALS AS MOST ACTIVITY WILL STAY TO OUR N AND W WITH OUR CURRENT FLOW REGIME. 08 && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... GADSDEN 65 85 66 88 68 / 10 40 20 50 50 ANNISTON 69 86 68 88 69 / 10 30 20 40 40 BIRMINGHAM 69 87 70 88 71 / 20 40 20 50 50 TUSCALOOSA 69 88 69 89 70 / 20 30 20 50 40 CALERA 70 87 69 88 69 / 10 30 20 40 40 AUBURN 68 85 68 87 69 / 10 20 20 20 30 MONTGOMERY 71 89 69 89 70 / 10 20 20 30 30 TROY 68 87 69 89 69 / 10 20 20 20 30 && .BMX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...NONE. && 27/08
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...CORRECTED FOR CODING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 805 PM CDT WED SEP 23 2009 ALZ011>015-017>050-250100- 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- 805 PM CDT WED SEP 23 2009 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE COUNTIES SERVED BY THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE IN BIRMINGHAM. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT. RIVER FLOODING WILL REMAIN A CONCERN ON SEVERAL CENTRAL ALABAMA RIVERS WITH SOME POINTS AT OR FORECAST TO REACH FLOOD STAGE. PLEASE REFER TO THE LATEST RIVER FLOOD STATEMENTS FOR DETAILS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY. RIVER FLOODING WILL REMAIN A CONCERN ON SEVERAL CENTRAL ALABAMA RIVERS THROUGH AT LEAST FRIDAY. PLEASE SEE THE LATEST RIVER FLOOD STATEMENTS FOR DETAILS. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... ACTIVATION OF STORM SPOTTERS AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT MAY BE NECESSARY TONIGHT OR THURSDAY ACROSS DUE TO FLOODING. 08
The Columbus AFB radar (KGWX), 19 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 01:21 UTC.
4 flash flood, 1 thunderstorm wind, 1 hail, 1 strong wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Several roads west of the city of Vernon had to be closed due to flooding.
Several trees were blown down in the Buhl community.
Several roads in downtown Vernon became temporarily impassable due to flooding.
Several roads in the city of Parrish had to be closed due to flooding.
Several roads in the city of Cordova had to be closed due to flooding.
A large oak tree was blown down onto a house on South 5th Street, in the city of Gadsden. Saturated ground from recent rains likely contributed to the trees failure. The fallen tree crushed the kitchen and another utility area of the house, causing considerable damage.
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, September 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: 198089, 198092, 198091, 198093, 198094, 198095, 198128.