A line of strong to severe thunderstorms moved east through across all of north Alabama during the late evening hours of the 5th and early morning hours of the 6th. Three tornadoes occurred in Colbert, Lauderdale and Jackson Counties.
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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 HUN wrote it up.
A line of strong to severe thunderstorms moved east through across all of north Alabama during the late evening hours of the 5th and early morning hours of the 6th. Three tornadoes occurred in Colbert, Lauderdale and Jackson Counties. There were also a few other reports of damaging winds. In the Shoals, rainfall of 1-1.5 inches fell in an hour or less, producing multiple reports of brief flash flooding in Tuscumbia and Sheffield.
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 Nov 5, 9:20 PM CST, 1 hour 52 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Huntsville AL 920 PM CST Mon Nov 5 2018 .NEAR TERM...(Tonight) Issued at 920 PM CST Mon Nov 5 2018 Squall line is coming more together now across west TN into NE MS this Mon evening. Developing line is still fairly linear at this point, although as the QLCS becomes more organized over the next couple of hrs, it should begin to show more bowing segments as the airmass continues to destabilize. Tornado Watches are in effect across portions of west/mid TN into north MS and will likely be issued for the cntrl TN Valley in the next hr or so. Main wx threats with the oncoming squall line continue to be damaging winds, large hail and tornadoes. The line should make its way across the area thru the overnight period and begin to exit NE AL heading into the daytime hrs Tue. Trailing cold front will also make its way thru the area shorty after the squall line, exiting NE AL to the east Tue morning. The wx should quickly improve in the wake of the frontal passage Tue morning, with rainfall tapering off just in time for Election Day. Only major change to the ongoing forecast was to have POPs mirror the movement of the squall line to the east during the overnight period. .SHORT TERM...(Tuesday through Wednesday) Issued at 310 PM CST Mon Nov 5 2018 Shower activity will quickly end from west to east across our eastern areas after daybreak Election Day Tuesday, as the QLCS and front head east of the region. Air temperatures behind the front are not that much colder, with highs on Tuesday rising to around 70. This also big picture wise will help tamp down overall storm strength. In a trough dominated mid/upper level pattern into the midweek across the greater North American domain, another system forming to our west will bring more chances of showers for the midweek. Upglide and moisture with this next system, along with minimal shear could bring an isolated thunderstorm in as well. Cooler air filtering in from the west will result in a cooler mid week, with high temperatures only in the low/mid 60s. .LONG TERM...(Wednesday night through Sunday) Issued at 310 PM CST Mon Nov 5 2018 The extended portion of the forecast begins Wednesday night with a disturbance moving through relatively zonal H5 flow. This will have sparked some shower activity across the area during the day Wednesday, with activity tapering off from NW to SE through the day. Lows Thursday morning will bottom out in the lower/middle 40s before yet another disturbance affects the area later in the day. This lobe of vorticity will precede a deepening H5 trof diving SE from the Upper MidW. While scattered showers are possible Thursday, a more widespread rain event arrives the next day as the upper trof deepens and becomes negatively tilted across the Great Lakes. A sfc low will strengthen across the OH Valley and drag a cold front across the area late in the day Friday, bringing upwards of 0.75" of rainfall to the region once again. High pressure at the sfc builds into the area for the weekend, with dry and unseasonably cold temperatures expected. After daytime highs Friday only topping out in the lower/middle 50s, lows Saturday morning will fall into the lower to middle 30s. Some moderation of temps is expected by Saturday afternoon with highs climbing into the lower 50s. A colder morning is expected Sunday morning with temperatures at or slightly below freezing. As a result, widespread frost is expected both mornings, with the potential for a Freeze Warning possible Sunday morning (as of this moment). Will continue to monitor this threat and will issue appropriate products as necessary as the window of time for that nears. Beyond the weekend, another (mostly dry) cold front will push through the area on Monday, with another sfc high building into the area from the NW. Have only included SCHC PoPs for this time period for now, but this may need adjusting as we head through the week. && .AVIATION...(For the 00Z TAFS through 00Z Tuesday evening) Issued at 550 PM CST Mon Nov 5 2018 MVFR cigs just above 1K ft remain in place at the two main airports heading into the early evening hrs this Mon. These low clouds are in place ahead of a cold front moving ewd into the Midwest region. Shra/tsra are developing ahead of this front as they spread ewd into west TN. A line of more organized tsra is expcted to develop/move ewd across the area going into the overnight period. Reduced cigs/vis are likely within this line of tsra, along with vrb winds gusting up to 40kt or so. The line should then move east of the area, along with the cold front itself, heading into the morning hrs Tue, with precip tapering off and cigs lifting above 3K ft. South winds around 18kt with higher gusts ahead of the front should also diminish with the frontal passage. Cloud cover should then diminish/sct late Mon morning, with VFR conds xpcted thru the remainder of the TAF period. && .HUN WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... AL...NONE. TN...NONE. && NEAR TERM...09 SHORT TERM...RSB LONG TERM...12 AVIATION...09 For more information please visit our website at weather.gov/huntsville.
Hazardous Weather Outlook National Weather Service Huntsville AL 314 PM CST Mon Nov 5 2018 ALZ001>010-016-TNZ076-096-097-061200- Lauderdale-Colbert-Franklin AL-Lawrence-Limestone-Madison-Morgan- Marshall-Jackson-De Kalb-Cullman-Moore-Lincoln-Franklin TN- 314 PM CST Mon Nov 5 2018 This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for north Alabama and portions of southern middle Tennessee. .DAY ONE...Tonight... A line of strong to severe thunderstorms will move across the Tennessee Valley late tonight through early Tuesday morning. Isolated severe storms may also develop ahead of this line late this evening. Widespread damaging winds of 60 to 70 MPH are likely and a few tornadoes are possible. A lesser chance for large hail is also possible. The threat for severe storms will be highest for northern and western portions of the area. Storms will exit the area quickly to the east by sunrise or shortly thereafter in northeastern Alabama. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Tuesday through Sunday... Cold temperatures will filter into the area for late this week, with the potential for widespread frost and freezing temperatures Saturday and especially Sunday mornings. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Activation of storm spotters and emergency management personnel is requested tonight into early Tuesday morning. 12
The Columbus AFB radar (KGWX), 128 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 05:10 UTC.
7 thunderstorm wind, 3 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.
A tree was knocked down at CR 85 at CR 261.
A tree was knocked down on CR 235 in Oakland. Time estimated by radar.
A tornado touched down west of Alabama Highway 157 and north of Lauderdale County Road 141, northwest of the Cloverdale community. The tornado snapped multiple trees as it tracked to the northeast. A house off CR 141 had its windows broken and some roofing material removed, several vehicles were pushed aside, and two campers were lifted and moved. The inhabitants took shelter in their basement upon receiving the warning and were unharmed. The tornado tracked further northeast along CR 141, mainly snapping and uprooting trees. The tornado reached peak intensity of 105 mph off CR 10, where a single family home was more heavily damaged, and a nearby barn was completely destroyed. Fortunately nobody was in the home at the time. The tornado reached its peak width along CR 259, where numerous trees were snapped and uprooted in a wooded area. Additional tree damage was noted along CR 10, and again along CR 259 just south of where it crosses intoTennessee. At this point, the tornado crossed into Wayne County, Tennessee.
A tree was knocked down on CR 259 near CR 10 in Cloverdale. Time estimated by radar.
A tree was knocked down on CR 14 near CR 1.
Tree limbs were knocked down on CR 63 in Killen. Time estimated by radar.
Power lines and trees were knocked down on CR 59 about 3/4 mile off of Highway 64 in Lexington. Time estimated by radar.
Roof damage was reported at the field house at Colbert Heights High School.
A tornado resulted in numerous trees being damaged in far southern Colbert County. The primary damage indicators were a combination of soft and hardwood trees. Much of the damaged trees had large branches snapped off with one tree fully uprooted south of the intersection of Cook Creek Road and Ligon Springs Road. Maximum wind, using an uprooted hardwood tree, was determined to be 76 mph.
A tornado touchdown occurred on the lee side of an east-northeast facing ridge, south of U.S. Highway 72 off Jackson County Road 226. The main damage indicators were a mix of hard and soft wood trees, with a degree of damage ranging from large snapped branches to uproots and snapped trunks. The tornado appeared to slightly intensify near the intersection of U.S. Highway 72 and CR 110. Multiple large, healthy, and deeply rooted hard wood trees were uprooted. Maximum winds were estimated at 105 mph. The torando crossed U.S. Highway 72 and tracked down CR 110 shearing off numerous the upper half of tree tops. Numerous trees were observed uprooted and snapped along a path leading up to North Sauty Creek. In this location, outside of tree damage, a small farm house and shed were completely destroyed and a large horse trailer was overturned. From U.S. Highway 72 looking north, continued tree damage was observed across North Sauty Creek and through Sauty Bottoms. The tornado likely lifted near Roberts Road at State Highway 79, where only small limb damage was observed on the western base of July Mountain.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Alabama in 2018Every state in 2018This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Alabama, 2018Warnings in Alabama, November 2018
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: 785082, 785083, 785078, 785084, 785085, 785086, 785087, 785088, 785079, 785081.