A weak upper level short wave moving southeast through the region, produced around a dusting of snow across portions of northeast Alabama during the morning hours.
Every event with a place to put it; 3 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 weak upper level short wave moving southeast through the region, produced around a dusting of snow across portions of northeast Alabama during the morning hours.
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 Mar 26, 2:27 AM CST, 33 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HUNTSVILLE AL 327 AM CDT TUE MAR 26 2013 .DISCUSSION... A QUASI-REX BLOCK STRETCHING FROM HUDSON BAY TO THE NEW ENGLAND STATES WILL GRADUALLY MOVE OFF TO THE NORTHEAST OVER THE COMING FEW DAYS. AS IT DOES SO...THE QUASI-PERMA LOW SITTING OVER NEW ENGLAND WILL ALSO MOVE OFF TO THE EAST BRINGING THE REMNANT SHEARED TROUGH (AND EXPANSIVE POLAR JET INTRUSION OVER THE SOUTHERN STATES) ENERGY OVER THE TN VALLEY WITH IT. AS THIS OCCURS, CLOUD COVER WILL BE SLOW TO RECEDE TODAY. MEANWHILE, FURTHER WEST, A WEAK RIDGE IS BEGINNING TO BUILD OVER THE CENTRAL ROCKIES. WHAT THIS WILL MEAN FOR THE TN VALLEY IS COLD/DRY CONDITIONS WITH A GRADUAL WINTER-LIKE WARMING TREND OVER THE NEXT FEW DAYS. ON A SIDE NOTE: PART OF THE REASON FOR THIS COLD INTRUSION OVER EASTERN NORTH AMERICA IS THE CONTINUED NEGATIVE SIGNALS TO THE ARCTIC (AO) AND NORTH ATLANTIC OSCILLATIONS (NAO). THE IMPACTS OVER THE EASTERN U.S., SYNOPTICALLY, WITH THE NORTH ATLANTIC OSCILLATION IS BELOW NORMAL HEIGHTS AND PRESSURES. A DIFFERENT LOCATION OF THE POLAR JET (SOUTHWARD) IS ALSO AN IMPACT AS WELL. THE ARCTIC OSCILLATION IN ITS NEGATIVE PHASE MEANS THAT A BELT OF USUALLY STRONG WINDS CIRCULATING AROUND THE NORTH POLE BECOME WEAKER, ALLOWING FOR EASIER SOUTHWARD PENETRATION OF COLDER, ARCTIC AIRMASSES... THE LINGERING CLOUDS OVER THE TN VALLEY AND VERY WEAK UVM WILL MEAN CONTINUED LIGHT SNOW THROUGHOUT TODAY WITH A GRADUAL CLEARING DURING LATE TONIGHT. HAVE INCLUDED COOLER TEMPERATURES THAN GUIDANCE FOR DAYTIME HIGHS AS THE GUIDANCE OVER THE PAST FEW DAYS HAS BEEN TOO WARM AND CAA IS STILL IN PLACE, THOUGH NOT AS STRONG AS PREVIOUS DAYS. WITH THE CLOUDS BREAKING AREAWIDE LATE TONIGHT, OVERNIGHT LOWS WILL DIP DOWN INTO THE UPPER 20S. LIGHT WINDS AND CLEARING SKY MAY ALLOW LOCATIONS IN PROTECTED VALLEYS AND HIGHER ELEVATIONS TO DROP EVEN FURTHER. AS THE UPPER LOW CONTINUES TO MOVE OFFSHORE INTO THE CENTRAL ATLANTIC, THE EASTERN CONUS WILL REMAIN IN DE-AMPLIFIED NW FLOW. WITH THE HIGHER SUN ANGLE AND GREATER AMOUNT OF INSOLATION (TIME WISE), THE AIRMASS SHOULD WARM ENOUGH TO TRANSLATE TO UPPER 50S AS HIGHS ON THURSDAY. THE MED RANGE MODELS DO INDICATE THE POSSIBILITY OF A WEAK MID-LEVEL SHORTWAVE TROUGH (WITHIN THE NORTHWEST FLOW) PROVIDING MORE CLOUD COVER ON THURSDAY. THUS, HAVE RETAINED THE MOSTLY CLOUDY CONDITIONS THROUGH THURSDAY EVENING. ONCE THAT SHORTWAVE TROUGH MOVES OFF TO THE SOUTHEAST, RETURN WEAK SOUTHERLY FLOW AND PARTLY CLOUDY SKY CONDITIONS SHOULD ALLOW TEMPS TO RISE INTO THE MID 60S. THE SFC HIGH PRESSURE SYSTEM MOVING EASTWARD ACROSS THE MID MS RIVER VALLEY EASTWARD WILL BRING SW FLOW AT THE SFC BY FRIDAY. THEN, AN ADDITIONAL MID-LEVEL SHORTWAVE TROUGH IS PROGGED TO APPROACH THE REGION ON SATURDAY WITH SOME ADDITIONAL MID-LEVEL MOISTURE WHICH MAY TRANSLATE TO SHOWER ACTIVITY MAINLY DURING THE DAY. A STRONG/BROAD TROUGH TRACKING ACROSS CENTRAL CANADA IS PROGGED TO SEND A MORE AMPLIFIED MID-LEVEL SHORTWAVE TROUGH ON SUNDAY INTO SUNDAY NIGHT WHICH LOOKS TO STEEPEN LAPSE RATES AND INDUCE MOISTURE ADVECTION. THIS WILL MEAN A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS THROUGHOUT THE DAY, THOUGH FURTHER REFINEMENTS WERE MADE (AND WILL LIKELY CONTINUE TO BE MADE) TO SUNDAY NIGHT WITH THE EXIT OF THE SHORTWAVE TROUGH. AFTER THIS SYSTEM, THE MODELS ARE HINTING AT A DISTINCT PATTERN CHANGE TO THE EASTERN U.S. TROUGH SETUP. IT APPEARS TO SHIFT EASTWARD OVER THE NORTHERN ATLANTIC WITH THE POSSIBILITY OF AN AMPLIFIED RIDGE SETTING UP OVER THE TN VALLEY: PERHAPS THE FIRST SIGNS OF ACTUAL SPRING-LIKE TEMPERATURES/WEATHER... SL.77 && .AVIATION... /ISSUED 1200 AM CDT TUE MAR 26 2013/ FOR 06Z TAFS...LINGERING POCKETS OF -SN/FLURRIES CONTINUE TO AFFECT LOCATIONS ALONG/E OF THE I-65 CORRIDOR...ALTHOUGH NO IMPACT TO THE TWO MAIN TERMINALS ARE XPCTED ATTM. OTHERWISE...THICK CANOPY OF MID LEVEL CLOUDS REMAIN ENTRENCHED ACROSS MUCH OF THE AREA THIS LATE EVENING...WITH CIGS AOA 5K FT. THIS PATTERN IS XPCTED TO CONTINUE INTO THE EARLY MORNING HRS...AS AN UPPER TROUGH AXIS GRADUALLY MOVES SWD ACROSS THE REGION. CIGS MAY ACTUALLY LOWER CLOSER TO THE MVFR CAT AROUND 14Z...WITH THE UPPER DISTURBANCE IN PLACE OVER THE AREA. CIGS/CONDS ARE THEN XPCTED TO IMPROVE/LIFT WELL ABOVE VFR LEVELS DURING THE AFTERNOON HRS...AS SOME DRIER AIR WORKS OUT OF THE NW WORKS ITS WAY INTO THE REGION. 09 && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... HUNTSVILLE 42 27 53 30 / 20 10 0 0 SHOALS 43 28 53 31 / 20 10 0 0 VINEMONT 42 27 49 31 / 20 10 0 0 FAYETTEVILLE 40 26 48 29 / 20 10 0 0 ALBERTVILLE 42 27 50 32 / 20 10 0 0 FORT PAYNE 41 26 51 29 / 20 10 0 0 && .HUN WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... AL...NONE. TN...NONE. && FOR MORE INFORMATION PLEASE VISIT OUR WEBSITE AT WEATHER.GOV/HUNTSVILLE.
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HUNTSVILLE AL 355 AM CDT TUE MAR 26 2013 ALZ001>010-016-TNZ076-096-097-261800- LAUDERDALE-COLBERT-FRANKLIN AL-LAWRENCE-LIMESTONE-MADISON-MORGAN- MARSHALL-JACKSON-DEKALB-CULLMAN-MOORE-LINCOLN-FRANKLIN TN- 355 AM CDT TUE MAR 26 2013 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTH ALABAMA AND PORTIONS OF SOUTHERN MIDDLE TENNESSEE. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT... THE PROBABILITY FOR WIDESPREAD HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS LOW. A SLIGHT CHANCE OF LIGHT SNOW OR FLURRIES WILL CONTINUE THROUGH THE AFTERNOON ACROSS THE AREA...MAINLY EAST OF INTERSTATE 65. NO SNOW ACCUMULATIONS ARE EXPECTED. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY... THERE IS A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS ON SUNDAY AND SUNDAY NIGHT. THE MAIN THREATS WITH THE STORMS WILL BE GUSTY WINDS AND HEAVY RAINFALL. .SPOTTER CALL TO ACTION STATEMENT... ACTIVATION OF STORM SPOTTERS AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT PERSONNEL IS NOT ANTICIPATED AT THIS TIME.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
3 winter weather. Local standard time, as filed.
Scattered snow flurries produced a light dusting of snow across portions of Madison county mainly on Monte Sano Mountain.
Scattered flurries produced a light dusting of snow in the higher elevations of Jackson county from near Skyline to near Bridgeport, Alabama.
Scattered flurries produced a dusting of snow near Henagar, 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 historyWarnings in Alabama, March 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: 439213, 439214, 439215.