A strong ridge set up across the Southeastern continental United States the last week of July. With high levels of moisture and temperatures reaching into the mid to upper 90s, resulting heat index values were over 105 degrees across portions of south Central Alabama.
Every event with a place to put it; 4 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 strong ridge set up across the Southeastern continental United States the last week of July. With high levels of moisture and temperatures reaching into the mid to upper 90s, resulting heat index values were over 105 degrees across portions of south Central Alabama. Heat related illnesses were reported to the Alabama Department of Public Health for the time period of July 28 -July 31, on both days when heat criteria was and was not met, and for counties which did not meet heat advisory criteria. A total of 14 illnesses were reported across Central Alabama during this 13 day period. The heat wave extended into August.
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 Jul 28, 9:34 AM CST, 1 hour 26 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 1034 AM CDT SAT JUL 28 2012 .UPDATE... FOR MORNING FORECAST. && .DISCUSSION... ONLY MADE A FEW TWEAKS TO TODAY'S HIGHS. NUDGED UP TEMPERATURES NE A DEGREE OR SO WITH AMPLE WARMING AND LESS SHOT FOR RAIN THAN YESTERDAY. ACTUALLY LOWER SW A TAD WITH ALREADY CUMULUS DEVELOPMENT TODAY AND DECENT RAIN CHANCES REMAINING ACROSS S THEY MAY HAVE TROUBLE REALIZING THE HIGHS. OTHERWISE...ALTHOUGH OVERALL RAIN CHANCES ARE NOT AS HIGH...DEW POINTS ARE NOT LOW ACROSS THE N...WITH ACTUAL SURFACE FRONT STILL TO OUR N. SO...WILL HAVE MENTIONED LOW POPS ACROSS THE NRN COUNTIES AS WELL...BUT ONLY 10S/20S. MICROBURST POTENTIAL IS HIGH FOR TODAY FROM THIS MORNING'S 12Z SOUNDING...SO AN ISOLATED STRONG TO SEVERE IS NOT OUT OF THE QUESTION...BUT NOTHING WIDESPREAD. UPDATE ALREADY OUT. 08/MK && .AVIATION... 12Z TAF DISCUSSION. FOG AND LOW CLOUDS HAVE DEVELOPED ACROSS THE NORTHERN HALF OF THE AREA AS WAS EXPECTED...ALTHOUGH VISIBILITIES HAVE DROPPED A TAD MORE WITH IFR/LIFR CONDITIONS ACROSS A GOOD PORTION OF THE AREA. HOWEVER...ONLY BHM AND EET ARE CURRENTLY AT THOSE LEVELS. STILL EXPECT ANB AND TCL TO DROP AT LEAST FOR AN HOUR OR SO. ONCE THE FOG AND LOW CLOUDS LIFT AFTER 9 AM...THE NORTHERN SITES WILL CLEAR OUT AND WILL MOST LIKELY REMAIN DRY. CONVECTION TODAY AIDED FROM UPPER LEVEL ENERGY...WILL BE IN THE FOR OF ISO TO SCT TS GENERALLY ACROSS THE SOUTHERN SITES WELL AHEAD OF THE FRONT. WITH THE BEST CHANCES AT MGM AND TOI...AND HAVE INCLUDE VCTS AT BOTH SITES. NOTE: IT APPEARS THAT EET ASOS IS NOT INDICATING THE CORRECT VIS AT THIS TIME. USE WITH CAUTION. WILL CONTINUE TO AMEND EET TAF FOR CEILINGS AS THEY ARE BELOW THE CRITICAL FLIGHT CATEGORIES. A TROUBLE TICKET HAS BEEN OPENED. 16 && .PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 342 AM CDT SAT JUL 28 2012/ DISCUSSION... THE CURRENT SETUP FEATURES A RIDGE OF HIGH PRESSURE ACROSS THE CENTRAL PLAINS AND TROUGHING OVER THE GREAT LAKES AND OHIO VALLEY REGIONS. A WEAKENING COLD FRONT ASSOCIATED WITH THE LONGWAVE TROF STRETCHES FROM OHIO SOUTHWESTWARD TO NORTHERN ARKANSAS. THIS FRONT WILL SLOWLY PUSH SOUTHWARD ACROSS THE SOUTHEAST STATES OVER THE NEXT 24-48 HRS. THE DREADED NORTHWEST FLOW ALOFT PATTERN WILL SET UP OVER THE REGION EARLY NEXT WEEK...WHICH ALWAYS WREAKS HAVOC ON THE FORECAST. SEVERAL UPPER LEVEL IMPULSES COULD SLIDE SOUTHEASTWARD ACROSS THE AREA WITHIN THIS FLOW...BRINGING MULTIPLE ROUNDS OF SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS TO CENTRAL ALABAMA. FOR TODAY...THE WEAKENING COLD FRONT WILL ENTER THE FORECAST AREA LATER TODAY AND LINGER INTO SUNDAY. THE BEST RAIN CHANCES WILL GENERALLY BE ACROSS THE SOUTHERN HALF OF THE CWA ASSOCIATED WITH WHAT APPEARS TO BE A PRE-FRONTAL TROUGH AND CO-LOCATED WITH THE BEST MOISTURE. SEVERAL MODELS ARE ALSO PICKING UP ON SOME DEVELOPMENT ALONG THE FRONT THIS EVENING ACROSS THE SOUTHERN APPALACHIANS AS A JET MAX/SHORTWAVE PUSHES SOUTHEAST INTO THE OHIO VALLEY. HAVE ADDED IN SLIGHT CHANCE POPS IN THE NE TO ACCOUNT FOR SOME POSSIBLE DEVELOPMENT LATE AFTERNOON/EVENING. ATMOSPHERIC CONDITIONS WILL BE SIMILAR TO YESTERDAY SO DO NOT EXPECT ANY WIDESPREAD HAZARDOUS WEATHER...HOWEVER CANNOT RULE OUT AN ISOLATED SEVERE STORM DURING THE LATE AFTERNOON/EVENING. BY SUNDAY THE WEAK FRONT/BOUNDARY SHOULD BE ACROSS THE SOUTHERN PORTIONS OF THE FORECAST AREA...THEREFORE THE BEST RAIN CHANCES WILL REMAIN ACROSS THE SOUTHEAST. TEMPERATURES OVER THE WEEKEND WILL BE A FEW DEGREES ABOVE CLIMATOLOGICAL NORMALS WITH HIGHS IN THE LOW/MID 90S. THE FORECAST FOR THE FIRST PART OF NEXT WEEK WILL BE RATHER TRICKY THANKS TO THE HIGHLY UNPREDICTABLE NORTHWEST FLOW ALOFT. MODELS SHOW SEVERAL DISTURBANCES RIDING SOUTHEASTWARD ALONG THE EASTERN FRINGES OF THE CENTRAL PLAINS DOME OF HIGH PRESSURE. TIMING OF THESE THUNDERSTORM COMPLEXES IS VERY DIFFICULT TO FORECAST VERY FAR IN ADVANCE. WILL CONTINUE WITH CHANCE POPS FOR MUCH OF THE MONDAY NIGHT-WEDNESDAY TIME FRAME FOR NOW. HOWEVER...RAIN CHANCES COULD EASILY BE INCREASED OR DECREASED SIGNIFICANTLY AT ANY GIVEN TIME DURING THIS PERIOD DEPENDING ON THE TRACK OF EACH MCS. BEYOND WEDNESDAY THE RIDGE BEGINS TO SLOWLY BUILD EASTWARD...WHICH WOULD HELP SHUNT MOST OF THE MCS ACTIVITY TO OUR NORTH AND EAST. CENTRAL ALABAMA WOULD THEN BE BACK IN MORE OF THE TYPICAL SUMMERTIME PATTERN WITH DIURNALLY-DRIVEN CONVECTION. 19 && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... GADSDEN 93 70 94 69 95 / 20 20 10 20 20 ANNISTON 94 71 95 70 95 / 20 20 20 20 20 BIRMINGHAM 95 72 95 72 96 / 20 10 10 20 20 TUSCALOOSA 97 72 97 72 98 / 20 10 10 10 20 CALERA 95 72 96 71 96 / 20 10 20 20 20 AUBURN 93 72 95 72 94 / 30 20 20 20 20 MONTGOMERY 96 74 98 71 97 / 30 20 20 10 20 TROY 93 74 95 70 95 / 40 20 30 20 20 && .BMX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NONE. && 08/16/19
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 900 AM CDT SAT JUL 28 2012 ALZ011>015-017>050-291400- MARION-LAMAR-FAYETTE-WINSTON-WALKER-BLOUNT-ETOWAH-CALHOUN-CHEROKEE- CLEBURNE-PICKENS-TUSCALOOSA-JEFFERSON-SHELBY-ST. CLAIR-TALLADEGA- CLAY-RANDOLPH-SUMTER-GREENE-HALE-PERRY-BIBB-CHILTON-COOSA-TALLAPOOSA- CHAMBERS-MARENGO-DALLAS-AUTAUGA-LOWNDES-ELMORE-MONTGOMERY-MACON- BULLOCK-LEE-RUSSELL-PIKE-BARBOUR- 900 AM CDT SAT JUL 28 2012 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE COUNTIES SERVED BY THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE IN BIRMINGHAM. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT. ISOLATED DAMAGING WINDS GREATER THAN 60 MPH ARE POSSIBLE ACROSS CENTRAL ALABAMA THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING MAINLY BETWEEN 2 PM AND 8 PM. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY. NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... ACTIVATION OF STORM SPOTTERS AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT MAY BE NEEDED ACROSS THE SOUTH. 08/MK
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
4 heat. Local standard time, as filed.
Montgomery Regional Airport ASOS reported heat index values over 105 degrees each afternoon from July 28-July 30.
Weedon Field Airport ASOS in Eufaula reported heat index values over 105 degrees each afternoon on July 28 -July 29. One illness was reported on July 30.
Tuscaloosa Regional Airport ASOS reported heat index values over 105 on the afternoon of July 29. Three illnesses were reported on July 30 and one on July 31.
Nearby ASOS equipment recorded heat index values over 105 degrees each afternoon from July 29-31. One illness was reported on July 30.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Alabama in 2012Every state in 2012This day in weather historyWarnings in Alabama, July 2012
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: 407329, 407334, 407331, 407332.