A strongly sheared and moist air mass resided over north Alabama during the afternoon hours on March 27th. Isolated strong to severe storms develop along and north of I-20 during the heating of the afternoon.
Every event with a place to put it. 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 strongly sheared and moist air mass resided over north Alabama during the afternoon hours on March 27th. Isolated strong to severe storms develop along and north of I-20 during the heating of the afternoon. A cold front then pushed through Alabama during the early morning hours on March 28th. A line thunderstorms ahead of the front also produced isolated strong to severe storms.
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 Mar 27, 1:39 PM CST, 1 hour 50 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Birmingham AL 239 PM CDT Sat Mar 27 2021 .SHORT TERM... /Updated at 113 PM CDT Sat Mar 27 2021/ Today through Sunday. Broad upper-level ridging is positioned over the Western Caribbean Sea while a sharp trough was moving out of the Four Corners states into Texas. The trough will quickly move east, becoming positioned over the Ohio and Tennessee Valley regions later in the day on Sunday. A stationary front was analyzed roughly along the Alabama/Tennessee state line and will lift northward into the Ohio River Valley region this evening. A strong cold front will approach the Mid- South region tonight and will move into Northwest Alabama in the early pre-dawn hours Sunday morning. The front will continue moving southeast, clearing the forecast area by Sunday evening. Hazardous Weather Concerns. Ample instability will exist ahead of the approaching cold front and strong forcing aloft will encourage thunderstorm development with the most intense convection expected to exist just to our north over the Tennessee Valley region. With that said, isolated severe storms will be possible across all of Central Alabama from early Sunday morning northwest to mid to late Sunday afternoon southeast. Instability values are sufficient for deep convection and a strong level jet along with decent upper level support will encourage thunderstorm development. Wind profiles will be sufficient for a few tornadoes northwest and north early through late Sunday morning, generally across the northern portion of the forecast area. These dynamics and favorable shear environment will be departing to the east as we progress through the day, so the tornado risk will decrease with time as the cold front and line of storms advance further southeast across the area. Strong surface destabilization is expected across the south and southeast, which will result in storm intensification with time as we proceed from midday through the afternoon hours. The concern for damaging winds and large hail will grow with time across the southeast due to the further increasing instability through the day on Sunday. While a brief tornado southeast can not be fully ruled out, the potential is low compared to across the northwest and northern counties Sunday morning. As the cold front moves through, a few lingering showers are expected, but the atmosphere will stabilize quickly as cold air advection ensues. Today. Expect partly cloudy skies with isolated showers. There will a chance for a thunderstorm or two, but potential remains low. Highs will range from around 80 north to the mid 80s south. South winds will be gusty at times from 10 to 20 mph with gusts to 25 mph at times. Tonight. Expect increasing clouds from the north tonight with a few isolated showers north and central. Lows will range from the lower 60s northwest to the upper 60s south. Winds will be breezy out of the south 10-15 mph with gusts to 20 mph at times. Sunday. Cloudy skies are forecast as a line of showers and thunderstorms moves southeast across the area. Some storms may be severe. Winds will be gusty 10-20 mph with gusts to 25 mph from the south ahead of the front followed by gusty northwest winds 10-20 mph with gusts to 25 mph behind the cold front. Highs will range from the mid 60s northwest to around 80 southeast. 05 .LONG TERM... /Updated at 0212 PM CDT Sat Mar 27 2021/ Sunday night through Friday. Any remaining showers should be exiting the southeast counties early Sunday evening. Much cooler and drier air will overspread the area Sunday night and Monday with lows in the 40s and highs in the 60s. A warm front will lift northward Monday night with a chance of showers across the southern counties. Mostly cloudy Tuesday with scattered showers and thunderstorms, with better chances of rain south of I-20. Increasing rain chances Tuesday night across north Alabama as low level southerly flow increases ahead of an approaching short wave trof. A strong cold front will push through Central Alabama on Wednesday producing widespread showers and thunderstorms. There is small window across the southern counties Wednesday afternoon when surface based instability may be high enough for a low end severe threat, but confidence too low at this time to include in forecast. A much colder air mass will overspread the area Thursday and Friday. Guidance has been fairly consistent with forecasting lower 30s across the northern counties for Friday morning, and confidence increasing for a light freeze. 58/rose Previous long-term discussion: /Updated at 0350 AM CDT Sat Mar 27 2021/ Sunday night through Tuesday. With the cold front stalled across the Gulf of Mexico, surface high pressure and much drier, northerly flow will move into the area and provide at least one day of pleasant Spring weather on Monday starting off in the 40s then warming into the upper 60s/lower 70s under mostly sunny skies. The weather becomes active again on Tuesday as the low-level ridge builds further to our east and southerly flow returns to the area. The stalled front to our south will begin lifting northward as an effective warm front in response to broad troughing over the Central CONUS. Expect an uptick in showers and a few thunderstorms across the area by Tuesday afternoon & night as warm, moist air advects inland. At the same time, a cold front will be racing into the Lower MS Valley as the associated surface low moves through Ontario. Wednesday through Friday. A complex of widespread showers and thunderstorms will spread across Central AL through the day on Wednesday as the cold front sweeps through the area. Latest model guidance has trended towards better agreement in terms of the timing with this system and generally centers the cold front just to the northwest of the I20/59 corridor by midday. As dewpoints rise to near 70 degrees Wednesday afternoon, a corridor of unstable air (MUCAPE ~1500 J/kg) would combine with strong, nearly unidirectional shear to provide a means of organized updrafts and the potential for some strong storms which could produce damaging winds and large hail. However, there are some questions regarding how far north the warm front lifts before the cold front moves through. Guidance seems to suggest the best potential for strong storms would reside over the southern half of Central AL or more so the coastal areas to our south. Will hold off on adding a severe threat to the forecast until we have a better understanding of the evolution of the warm front which will undoubtedly have large implications on the mesoscale environment. Otherwise, broad ridging builds in behind this system on Thursday through the end of the week, and we'll see much cooler, dry air move back into the Southeast with highs in the 50s and 60s. Lows Thursday & Friday mornings will drop into the mid 30s, potentially near freezing in our northern locations, so we'll need to assess the potential for frost if this trend continues. 86 && .AVIATION... 18Z TAF Discussion. VFR conditions will prevail through this evening. Expect scattered clouds with a few showers this afternoon. There will be a very small chance for an isolated thunderstorm, but probabilities for a few showers and an isolated storm are too low to include at any terminal location. Low-level winds will be gusty out of the south 12-24 kts at times. Clouds will increase from northwest to southeast after midnight as a cold front nears from the northwest. Expect increasing chance for RA and TSRA, impacting the northern terminals around from generally 09z to the end of this cycle. Southern terminals will begin to be impacted generally toward 15z and extending beyond this cycle. Expect a few severe storms with damaging winds and hail potential as the storms move across the area. Low-level winds will shift out of the northwest behind the front with gusts 10-20 kts at time through the afternoon Sunday. 05 && .FIRE WEATHER... Moist and mild conditions overnight with south winds 10-15 mph. Little or no rain expected before midnight, but increasing rain chances after midnight northwest as a cold front approaches the area. A band of showers and thunderstorms will track southeast across the area on Sunday. Some of the storms may be severe. Cooler with no rain Sunday night or Monday. Increasing rain chances Tuesday and Tuesday night as a warm front lifts northward. Showers likely and a chance of storms on Wednesday. No fire weather concerns due to moist ground fuels and high RH values. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... Gadsden 66 70 37 67 44 / 40 100 10 0 10 Anniston 66 73 40 70 47 / 20 100 10 10 10 Birmingham 66 70 40 68 49 / 30 100 10 0 10 Tuscaloosa 68 71 41 68 48 / 30 100 10 10 10 Calera 67 72 41 68 49 / 20 100 10 10 10 Auburn 64 76 43 68 52 / 10 100 10 10 30 Montgomery 68 78 45 71 53 / 10 100 10 10 20 Troy 67 80 46 71 54 / 10 100 20 10 50 && .BMX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES/... None. &&
Hazardous Weather Outlook National Weather Service Birmingham AL 109 PM CDT Sat Mar 27 2021 ALZ011>015-017>050-282115- 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- 109 PM CDT Sat Mar 27 2021 This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for the counties served by the National Weather Service office in Birmingham. .DAY ONE...Outlook through Tonight. Minor flooding will occur along portions of the Tombigbee, Cahaba, Coosa, Locust Fork, and Black Warrior River Basins. Severe storms may develop across the northwestern portions of Central Alabama after midnight. Areas impacted before sunrise should be generally west of Interstate 65 and north of Interstate 20. Large hail, damaging winds, and isolated tornadoes are possible. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Sunday through Friday. A line of thunderstorms will track southeast across Central Alabama through 4 PM Sunday. There is small risk of severe storms with a threat of large hail and damaging winds. Minor flooding will continue along portions of the Tombigbee, Cahaba, Coosa, Locust Fork, and Black Warrior River Basins this weekend and into early next week. A light freeze is possible Friday morning across areas along and north of I-20. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Activation of storm spotters and emergency management may be needed late tonight and into Sunday.
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
303 PM CDT SAT MAR 27 2021
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0849 PM HAIL 1 W CLANTON 32.84N 86.64W
03/25/2021 E1.25 INCH CHILTON AL PUBLIC
LASTED ABOUT 3 MINUTES.
&&
DAVISPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
310 PM CDT SAT MAR 27 2021
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0720 PM FLASH FLOOD 2 W WARRIOR 33.81N 86.84W
03/25/2021 JEFFERSON AL PUBLIC
WARRIOR JASPER ROAD IMPASSABLE.
&&
DAVISPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
313 PM CDT SAT MAR 27 2021
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0500 PM FLASH FLOOD MAYTOWN 33.53N 87.00W
03/25/2021 JEFFERSON AL FIRE DEPT/RESCUE
ROAD IMPASSABLE BEHIND MAYTOWN FIRE STATION.
&&
DAVISPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
332 PM CDT SAT MAR 27 2021
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
1148 AM HAIL 1 SSE GARDENDALE 33.64N 86.81W
03/25/2021 E1.75 INCH JEFFERSON AL PUBLIC
CORRECTS PREVIOUS HAIL REPORT FROM 1 SSE
GARDENDALE. SOCIAL MEDIA PICTURE OF HAIL AT
LEAST GOLF BALL SIZE NEAR GARDENDALE.
&&
DAVISSpecial Weather Statement
National Weather Service Birmingham AL
351 PM CDT Sat Mar 27 2021
ALZ013-015-023-272115-
Fayette AL-Walker AL-Tuscaloosa AL-
351 PM CDT Sat Mar 27 2021
...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SOUTHEASTERN WALKER...NORTH
CENTRAL TUSCALOOSA AND SOUTHEASTERN FAYETTE COUNTIES UNTIL 415 PM
CDT...
At 350 PM CDT, Doppler radar was tracking a strong thunderstorm near
Boley Springs, or 17 miles southwest of Cordova, moving northeast at
45 mph.
Half inch hail and winds in excess of 40 mph will be possible with
this storm.
Locations impacted include...
Jasper, Cordova, Dora, Parrish, Oakman, Gorgas Steam Plant, Burnwell,
Beloit, Gorgas, Whitson, Goodsprings, Barney, Wiley, The Wye and
Tutwiler.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
Torrential rainfall is also occurring with this storm, and may lead
to localized flooding. Do not drive your vehicle through flooded
roadways.
Frequent cloud to ground lightning is occurring with this storm.
Lightning can strike 10 miles away from a thunderstorm. Seek a safe
shelter inside a building or vehicle.
&&
LAT...LON 3385 8721 3369 8706 3361 8717 3361 8718
3360 8718 3360 8719 3359 8720 3342 8743
3361 8755
TIME...MOT...LOC 2050Z 231DEG 39KT 3359 8741
32/DavisSpecial Weather Statement
National Weather Service Birmingham AL
410 PM CDT Sat Mar 27 2021
ALZ015-024-272200-
Walker AL-Jefferson AL-
410 PM CDT Sat Mar 27 2021
...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR EASTERN WALKER AND NORTHWESTERN
JEFFERSON COUNTIES UNTIL 500 PM CDT...
At 410 PM CDT, Doppler radar was tracking strong thunderstorms along
a line extending from near Parrish to 7 miles northwest of Oak Grove.
Movement was northeast at 35 mph.
Nickel size hail and winds in excess of 40 mph will be possible with
these storms.
Locations impacted include...
Jasper, Gardendale, Fultondale, Sumiton, Cordova, Dora, Adamsville,
Warrior, Kimberly, Graysville, Morris, Brookside, Parrish, Sipsey,
Maytown, West Jefferson, Cardiff, Gorgas Steam Plant, Gorgas and
Rocky Hollow.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
Torrential rainfall is also occurring with these storms, and may lead
to localized flooding. Do not drive your vehicle through flooded
roadways.
These storms may intensify, so be certain to monitor local radio
stations and available television stations for additional information
and possible warnings from the National Weather Service.
&&
LAT...LON 3391 8708 3390 8710 3389 8709 3389 8701
3387 8700 3386 8696 3382 8695 3382 8693
3384 8688 3384 8686 3364 8675 3349 8727
3351 8726 3351 8728 3374 8737 3392 8708
TIME...MOT...LOC 2110Z 241DEG 31KT 3370 8730 3354 8723
32/DavisThe Birmingham radar (KBMX), 84 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 21:29 UTC.
4 thunderstorm wind, 3 hail. Local standard time, as filed.
Dime to quarter size hail in the town of Boldo. Several trees also uprooted.
Dozens of trees uprooted and snapped along Joe Nail Road.
Quarter size hail reported in the city of Gardendale.
Several trees uprooted and power lines downed in the town of Guin.
Numerous trees uprooted along Highway 129 south of the town of Brilliant.
Several trees uprooted and power lines downed along Highway 119 near Grants Mill Road.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Alabama in 2021Every state in 2021This day in weather historyWarnings in Alabama, March 2021
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: 948763, 948765, 948768, 948766, 948770, 948773, 948774.