A narrow line of heavy showers along a strong cold front produced brief wind gusts of 40-50 mph. The winds knocked down a couple of trees in Colbert County.
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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 narrow line of heavy showers along a strong cold front produced brief wind gusts of 40-50 mph. The winds knocked down a couple of trees in Colbert County.
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 15, 5:35 AM CST, 1 hour 8 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Huntsville AL 535 AM CST Sun Nov 15 2020 .UPDATE... For 12Z TAFS. && .NEAR TERM...(Today) Issued at 310 AM CST Sun Nov 15 2020 A rather energetic storm system was moving across the upper Mississippi River Valley. This system's surface low was moving eastward across southern Wisconsin, with a strong cold front extending south, then SW to the Ozarks, then across the NE Texas Metroplex. The infrared satellite view indicated a hybrid split flow appearance, with a stream of mid level moisture heading more to the east. While at the same time, moisture was heading NNE along the frontal boundary to over the central Great Lakes. The water vapor views, especially the mid/high 6.95/6.19 micron indicated this split appearance as well. The nearest showers preceding the front were heading across western and middle Tennessee. The stronger showers and some thunderstorms also delineated the front, almost as a solid line per composite radar. Winds with this system were on the rather strong side. 250mb winds in the more eastward moving cloud band were in the 110-130kt range. As the trough becomes negatively tilted in the predawn and this morning, 250mb winds will increase into the 130-150kt range as they exit the Mid Atlantic coast later today. Winds continued on the stronger than usual trend at 850mb, with 40-50kt SSW over the region at the present. An inversion aloft so far was keeping these winds above the surface at most places. However, a few spots further west like over NW AL and NE MS were the inversion was weaker, surface winds were sustain in the 15-20 mph range with gusts over 25 mph. A mesonet site on Monte Sano on the east side of Huntsville had winds in the 15-20 mph range with some gusts around 30 mph. The winds will be getting close to advisory range (peaking at or above 35 mph mainly in the higher terrain). There is not enough areal coverage of these strong winds to justify an advisory. The upper reflection of this system will take on a negative tilt into early hours this morning. The stronger dynamics will generally remain to our north as the system heads across the Great Lakes today. The cold front with this system should be rapidly sweeping to the east as well. The front should reach the Quad City of NW AL 7-9 AM, I-65 region a couple of hours later, then east of NE AL before noon. Shower chances and intensity will be stronger over NW AL, with a marked weaker trend as the front plows further eastward across the region this morning. Given the stronger dynamics and convergence early, added isolated thunder into the mix across parts of NW AL this morning. Given the system's strength weakens as it moves further east, kept thunder west of I-65 this go around. High temperatures will be a bit cooler, mostly in the mid 60s, given rain chances and a beginning of cold air advection. Shower activity will rapidly end from west to east during the late morning and early afternoon, as the front heads further east of the region and drier air filters in from the west. .SHORT TERM...(Tonight through Tuesday night) Issued at 310 AM CST Sun Nov 15 2020 The rest of the forecast will feature generally clear skies, as high pressure builds in from the west. Westerly winds in the 5-15 mph range at dusk, will rapidly diminish to around 5 mph this evening. The colder air will be more noticed, with low temperatures by daybreak Monday in the mid 30s. Some frosting could be realized in those normally colder spots. High temperatures later on Mon should rise into the lower 60s. Low temperatures Mon night should be a bit warmer, in the mid/upper 30s. A reinforcing shot of colder air will move across the area during Tuesday, keeping highs that day in the lower 60s. Even colder Tue night with lows in the low/mid 30s - with better chances for frosting and/or freezing. .LONG TERM...(Wednesday through Saturday) Issued at 310 AM CST Sun Nov 15 2020 A large area of high pressure will build southeast from south central Canada over much of the eastern CONUS on Wednesday. Despite abundant sunshine, cold air advection should keep highs below normal. Expect highs to rise only into the lower 50s to around 60 degrees (coolest temperatures east of the I-65 corridor). With light or calm surface winds expected on Wednesday night, lows will likely be able to drop into the lower to mid 30s near and east of the I-65 corridor. Further west, lows should drop into the mid to upper 30s. Thursday through Saturday night, the surface high slowly moves east off the Atlantic coast and another frontal boundary develops over the central Great Lakes region extending into NW Texas. The end result will be mostly clear skies through that period. High Temperatures will slowly rise into the lows 60s on Thursday and into the mid/upper 60s by Saturday. Lows will slowly warm into the lower to mid 40s by Saturday morning. Partly cloudy to mostly conditions should redevelop on Sunday as the approaching front stalls north of the area. This could keep highs a tad cooler with them climbing into the mid to upper 60s primarily. As southerly flow continues ahead of the front expect more moist air to advect into the region. This advection of warmer, more moist air along with cloud cover should keep lows in the upper 40s to around 50. By Sunday night, most guidance pushes the frontal boundary quickly east. This could bring enough forcing and deeper moisture to warrant the possibility of isolated showers in northwestern Alabama. && .AVIATION...(For the 12Z TAFS through 12Z Monday morning) Issued at 535 AM CST Sun Nov 15 2020 An area of light showers was moving across the region, preceding a stronger cold front with heavier showers nearing far NW AL. This boundary should reach KMSL 13-14Z and KHSV near 16Z. A brief period of moderate showers and possible thunder (mainly near KMSL) is possible as the front passes. SW winds of 10-15kt, gusting to 25kt will veer more to the west during the course of the morning, then become NW in the afternoon. Have continued Low-Level Wind Shear at both terminals until the front passes and winds aloft slacken. Showers should end, and clouds decrease as drier air rapidly sweeps across the region from the west - returning VFR weather. NW winds in the 15-25kt range are expected into the late afternoon, with winds diminishing after dusk. && .HUN WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... AL...NONE. TN...NONE. && NEAR TERM...RSB SHORT TERM...RSB LONG TERM...KTW AVIATION...RSB For more information please visit our website at weather.gov/huntsville.
Hazardous Weather Outlook National Weather Service Huntsville AL 613 AM CST Sun Nov 15 2020 ALZ001>010-016-TNZ076-096-097-160000- Lauderdale-Colbert-Franklin AL-Lawrence-Limestone-Madison-Morgan- Marshall-Jackson-DeKalb-Cullman-Moore-Lincoln-Franklin TN- 613 AM CST Sun Nov 15 2020 This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for north central Alabama, northeast Alabama, northwest Alabama and southern middle Tennessee. .DAY ONE...Today and tonight. Winds will remain elevated today, as a cold front moves across the area this morning. Winds gusts of 20 to 30 mph, just below advisory criteria are forecast. Strongest gusts will be in the higher, more exposed terrain of northeast Alabama and southern Middle Tennessee. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Monday through Saturday. No hazardous weather is expected at this time. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Activation of storm spotters and emergency management personnel is not anticipated at this time.
Special Weather Statement
National Weather Service Huntsville AL
551 AM CST Sun Nov 15 2020
ALZ001>003-151245-
Lauderdale AL-Franklin AL-Colbert AL-
551 AM CST Sun Nov 15 2020
...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR LAUDERDALE...COLBERT AND FRANKLIN
COUNTIES UNTIL 651 AM CST...
At 551 AM CST, Doppler radar was tracking a line of showers and
isolated thunderstorms stretching from near Burnsville to Blair
Mississippi, moving east at 45 mph.
Winds in excess of 40 mph will be possible with this line of showers
and isolated thunderstorms as it moves into northwestern Alabama
through 645 AM CST.
Locations impacted include...
Florence, Muscle Shoals, Russellville, Sheffield, Tuscumbia, Red Bay,
Cherokee, Littleville, St. Florian and Underwood-Petersville.
LAT...LON 3500 8753 3499 8753 3431 8775 3432 8817
3489 8810 3492 8816 3501 8820
TIME...MOT...LOC 1146Z 272DEG 38KT 3489 8839
KTWThe Columbus AFB radar (KGWX), 110 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 12:43 UTC.
2 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
A tree was knocked down at 803 East 7th Street in Tuscumbia. Time estimated by radar.
A tree was knocked down on Vandiver Hollow Road at U.S. Highway 43. Time estimated by radar.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Alabama in 2020Every state in 2020This day in weather historyWarnings in Alabama, November 2020
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: 928581, 928579.