A long-lived quasi-linear convective system (QLCS) tracked rapidly eastward across Tennessee through the early morning hours of the 30th. Numerous tornadoes impacted middle Tennessee with this line, and one EF-1 tornado also struck Winston into Cullman Counties in north Alabama.
Every event with a place to put it; 2 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 HUN wrote it up.
A long-lived quasi-linear convective system (QLCS) tracked rapidly eastward across Tennessee through the early morning hours of the 30th. Numerous tornadoes impacted middle Tennessee with this line, and one EF-1 tornado also struck Winston into Cullman Counties in north Alabama. Numerous other reports of thunderstorm wind damage were received. Very strong wind energy aloft was associated with this system along with an unseasonably warm and moist air mass.
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 Huntsville, AL wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 30, 1:53 AM CST, 31 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HUNTSVILLE AL 153 AM CST WED JAN 30 2013 .UPDATE... FOR TORNADO WATCH. && .DISCUSSION... WILL BE AMENDING ZONES ASAP FOR NEW TORNADO WATCH THAT INCLUDES THE ENTIRE FORECAST AREA UNTIL 16Z. CLOSELY MONITORING LINE OF STRONG/SEVERE STORMS ACROSS NORTHEAST MISSISSIPPI AND INTO WEST TENNESSEE. EXPECT POTENTIAL FOR FURTHER DESTABILIZATION AND STORM DEVELOPMENT TO INCREASE ALONG AND SLIGHTLY AHEAD OF THE STORM LINE OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL HOURS. TT && .AVIATION... /ISSUED 1154 PM CST TUE JAN 29 2013/ FOR 06Z TAFS...MVFR CIGS HAVE BUILT BACK INTO THE REGION WITH POCKETS OF CIGS VARYING BTWN 1500-4500FT. EXPECT LARGELY MVFR CONDITIONS TO CONTINUE PRIOR TO THE ARRIVAL OF THE LINE OF STORMS AND COLD FRONT...WITH CIGS/VIS DROPPING BELOW ALT REQ AS THE LINE APPROACHES. CONDITIONS MAY BRIEFLY DIP INTO IFR BUT WOULD ONLY BE AS ANY TSRA DIRECTLY IMPACT THE TERMINALS AT THE FRONT PASSES (NEARER 10-12Z BUT THE TIMING COULD STILL OCCUR A COUPLE HRS EITHER SIDE OF THIS BEST ESTIMATE). WINDS WILL CONTINUE TO BE GUSTY OUT OF THE SW UNTIL THE FRONT ARRIVES AND THEN SWING STRONGLY TO BECOME MORE WESTERLY. GUSTY WINDS WILL THEN CONTINUE THRU THE DAY TOMORROW AS CIGS LIFT. ANOTHER BRIEF PERIOD OF MVFR CIGS COULD OCCUR LATE IN THE PERIOD BUT THEY COULD REMAIN JUST N OF THE TERMINALS. CCC && .HUN WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... AL...WIND ADVISORY UNTIL 6 PM CST THIS EVENING FOR ALZ001>010-016. TN...WIND ADVISORY UNTIL 6 PM CST THIS EVENING FOR TNZ076-096-097. && FOR MORE INFORMATION PLEASE VISIT OUR WEBSITE AT WEATHER.GOV/HUNTSVILLE.
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HUNTSVILLE AL 1057 PM CST TUE JAN 29 2013 ALZ001>010-016-TNZ076-096-097-301115- LAUDERDALE-COLBERT-FRANKLIN AL-LAWRENCE-LIMESTONE-MADISON-MORGAN- MARSHALL-JACKSON-DEKALB-CULLMAN-MOORE-LINCOLN-FRANKLIN TN- 1057 PM CST TUE JAN 29 2013 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTH ALABAMA AND PORTIONS OF SOUTHERN MIDDLE TENNESSEE. .DAY ONE...REMAINDER OF TONIGHT... A SQUALL LINE OF STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WILL PUSH EASTWARD ACROSS NORTHWEST ALABAMA THROUGH 5 AM...WITH THIS LINE EXPECTED TO REACH THE INTERSTATE 65 CORRIDOR BY AROUND 6 AM AND NORTHEAST ALABAMA BY 9 AM. DAMAGING STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS OF 60 TO 70 MPH WILL BE POSSIBLE WITH THIS LINE OF STORMS...ALONG WITH A FEW GUSTS IN EXCESS OF 70 MPH. BRIEF TORNADOES WILL ALSO BE POSSIBLE... ESPECIALLY NEAR BOWING SEGMENTS OF THE LINE. LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL MAY RESULT IN PONDING ON AREA ROADWAYS AND MINOR FLOODING OF LOW- LYING AREAS. OTHERWISE...A WIND ADVISORY REMAINS IN PLACE FOR ALL OF NORTHERN ALABAMA AND SOUTHERN MIDDLE TENNESSEE THROUGH 6 PM WEDNESDAY...WITH SUSTAINED WINDS OF 20 TO 30 MPH AND GUSTS TO 40 MPH EXPECTED DURING THIS PERIOD. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY... LINGERING THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY WILL END ACROSS NORTHEAST ALABAMA BY 11 AM WEDNESDAY...AS THE COLD FRONT MAKES STEADY PROGRESS TO THE EAST. STRONG TO SEVERE STORMS WILL BE A POSSIBILITY UNTIL THE TIME OF FRONTAL PASSAGE...WITH DAMAGING WINDS AND BRIEF TORNADOES THE MAIN THREATS. AS COLDER AIR SPREADS INTO THE AREA WEDNESDAY EVENING...LINGERING PRECIPITATION ACROSS SOUTHERN MIDDLE TENNESSEE AND FAR NORTHEAST ALABAMA WILL TRANSITION TO LIGHT SNOW. LITTLE IF ANY SNOW ACCUMULATION IS EXPECTED. .SPOTTER CALL TO ACTION STATEMENT... ACTIVATION OF STORM SPOTTERS AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT PERSONNEL IS NEEDED ACROSS NORTH ALABAMA AND SOUTHERN MIDDLE TENNESSEE THROUGH MID MORNING. TT
The Columbus AFB radar (KGWX), 101 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 08:57 UTC.
25 thunderstorm wind, 2 strong wind, 1 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.
Station DW9504 in Florence reported a wind gust of 57 mph. Emergency Management reported trees were knocked down on homes on Elmhurst Road and Woodmont Drive in Tuscumbia and Muscle Shoals.
Trees were downed at County Road 2 near the Natchez Trace. The time was estimated by radar.
Strong non-thunderstorm winds tore away the awning from a building on the town square in Moulton and blew it into the street.
A tree was knocked down on County Road 6 near Central High School.
A tree was downed by thunderstorm winds at Pleasant Site Highway 90 at Troy Thorn Road. The time was estimated by radar.
A tree was downed by thunderstorm winds at Hwy 247 and 21 intersection. The time was estimated by radar.
The roof blown off a building on 2nd Street in Sheffield due to thunderstorm winds. The time was estimated from radar.
A tree was downed by thunderstorm winds near highways 524 and 41. The time was estimated by radar.
A few trees were downed by thunderstorm winds along County Road 170 at Highway 431. The time was estimated by radar.
A tree was downed by thunderstorm winds near Highway 172 and Overton Farm Road. The time was estimated by radar.
A church steeple was destroyed by thunderstorm winds at Cumberland Presbyterian Church in Anderson, Alabama. The time was estimated by radar.
A power pole was snapped by thunderstorm winds at the intersection of County Road 217 and Highway 20 in Hillsboro, Alabama.
Thunderstorm winds produced roof damage at the Southern Gayles Golf Course between Athens and Toney, Alabama. The time was estimated by radar.
Roof damage due to thunderstorm winds was reported at the 24000 block of Mooresville Road in the Thatch community.
A storage shed was rolled over with poles pulled from ground by thunderstorm winds. The time was estimated by radar.
Multiple trees were downed by thunderstorm winds along county roads 564 and 70.
Thunderstorm winds produced damage to a metal roof just southwest of Moulton, Alabama. The time was estimated by radar.
A tree was knocked onto a mobile home on Liberty Road in the Punkin Center area. Additional trees were blown down onto powerlines in this area. The time was estimated by radar.
A tornado crossed the Winston and Cullman county line just south of county road 1043, causing minor tree damage and destroying a barn on county road 1038. The tornado then strengthened to an EF-1 with winds around 90 MPH and destroyed a mobile home along county road 1043 just east of county road 1038. The tornado continued east-northeast. lifting near county road 1047. The survey was conducted by NWS Birmingham since the tornado initially touched down in Winston County.
Six to eight homes in the Lake Forest community had minor to moderate roof/shingle damage due to thunderstorm winds. Portions of a 100-yard long wood fence line were blown over and destroyed. The time was estimated by radar.
A tree was downed by thunderstorm winds on county road 940. The time was estimated from radar.
A semi truck was blown into a ditch by thunderstorm winds.
Power lines were knocked down at Grisham Drive and Lee Street in Rogersville by thunderstorm winds.
Power lines were knocked down by thunderstorm winds on the roadway at the intersection of county roads 1043 and 1046 near Arkadelphia, Alabama.
The roof of a barn was blown away by thunderstorm winds on County Road 1253 near Arkadelphia, Alabama. The time was estimated by radar.
Trees were knocked down by thunderstorm winds onto St Joseph Drive and Scenic Lane in Cullman, Alabama. The time was estimated by radar.
The county road department reported a large tree down due to thunderstorm winds onto county road 391 just off off highway 35 near Aspel, Alabama.
The top of a tree was snapped off by thunderstorm winds and blown onto road near Aspel, Alabama.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Alabama in 2013Every state in 2013This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Alabama, 2013Warnings in Alabama, January 2013
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: 428945, 430011, 426566, 426565, 423514, 423515, 423516, 423517, 430010, 423518, 423519, 430063, 423520, 426564, 423521, 423522, 423523, 423524, 423511, 423530, 423526, 423527, 430058, 430060, 430023, 430041, 423528, 423529.