Strong southeasterly gradient winds gusting to 35-45 mph across Central Alabama in advance of an approaching cold front resulted in sporadic tree damage and isolated structural damage. In Bibb County, one person was killed after being hit by a falling tree limb.
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 BMX wrote it up.
Strong southeasterly gradient winds gusting to 35-45 mph across Central Alabama in advance of an approaching cold front resulted in sporadic tree damage and isolated structural damage. In Bibb County, one person was killed after being hit by a falling tree limb.
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 25, 1:50 PM CST, 3 hours 25 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Birmingham AL 250 PM CDT Mon Mar 25 2024 ...New LONG TERM... .SHORT TERM... (This afternoon through Tuesday) Issued at 114 PM CDT MON MAR 25 2024 A mild, breezy afternoon is underway across Central Alabama downstream of a deepening mid to upper-level trough over the Central Plains. Clouds are increasing ahead of the trough with south to southwesterly flow aloft. A strong pressure gradient is developing due to the interaction between high pressure along the East Coast and the developing system to our west. Wind gusts of 20 to 25 mph have been ongoing for much of the day, and gusts are likely to increase to as high as 35 to 45 mph overnight as a cold front moves across the Lower MS River Valley. A Wind Advisory will be in effect for most of Central Alabama until 10 AM tomorrow morning. Winds will decrease west to east behind the frontal passage. Thunderstorms have begun initiating across the ArkLaTex, and the activity is expected to organize as the severe weather potential increases across the Lower MS Valley throughout the remainder of the day. A line of storms will be oriented along the cold front as they approach western portions of Central Alabama around midnight. A strong 50-70kt low-level jet and 90 to 100kts of mid-level flow will result in prime conditions for organized thunderstorms, but limited availability of SBCAPE, which will diminish with time, will act to limit the overall severe threat. Dewpoints have been slowly rising today but still remain in the upper 40s to lower 50s due to the east- southeasterly sfc winds. There's still work to do to achieve the necessary dewpoints in the mid 60s, and short term guidance continues to resolve a diminishing, suppressed warm sector characterized by 200-500 J/kg of SBCAPE across our far southwestern counties just ahead of the line of storms. It does appear that conditions in this zone will be most supportive for severe weather where the meager instability could align with 200-400 m2/s2 of eff. SRH to support a tornado or damaging wind gusts, but we continue to stress that the overall threat is limited. On the other hand, QPF has been lowered slightly in this update. We're still expecting around 1.5 to 2.5 inches of rainfall over areas along the I-20 corridor west of I-65. This will support a limited threat of flooding for low-lying and poor drainage areas. The line of showers and weakening storms will move east of I-65 by mid-morning then continue into Georgia through the afternoon as the parent trough rotates northeast towards the Great Lakes Region. Decreasing clouds behind the front will allow temperatures to warm into the lower to mid 70s, especially west of I-65. 86/Martin && .LONG TERM... (Tuesday night through next Sunday) Issued at 204 PM CDT MON MAR 25 2024 By Tuesday evening, the cold front will be to our southeast with clouds continuing to decrease through the night. Wednesday, a short wave rounding the main trough axis will allow a surface low to strengthen along that cold front. Models have trended this strengthening closer to the Carolina coast. This will keep Central Alabama dry on Wednesday, except maybe a sliver of the extreme southeast where a few showers are possible. With the main trough axis moving to the east of the area, upper level ridging will build across the Plains and high pressure slides into the Southeast by Thursday night. Clear skies and calming winds will allow temperatures to cool into the mid 30s across the north, with patchy frost possible Friday morning. Elsewhere, lows will be in the upper 30s to lower 40s. Through the weekend, upper level flow becomes zonal, with the surface high centered to the east of Central Alabama. Westerly to southwesterly flow through the low to mid levels will allow temperatures to moderate, with mid 70s to lower 80s expected for the weekend. Dry air and ridging will keep the area rain free. 14 && .AVIATION... (18Z TAFS) Issued at 114 PM CDT MON MAR 25 2024 An approaching weather system will bring gusty conditions and aviation impacts to the area through this TAF period. A strong pressure gradient will lead to wind gusts as high as 30 to 40kts tonight while a line of TSRA moves west to east across the area, reaching TCL as early as 05Z. Ceilings will fall to IFR early tomorrow morning as the front moves across the area. SHRA should end at TCL first ~15Z, but will continue at TOI through the end of the period. 86/Martin && .FIRE WEATHER... A frontal boundary will approach the area tonight, with an area of rain and thunderstorms arriving overnight. The front and associated rains will move through Central Alabama through tomorrow morning. Southeasterly 20ft winds remain elevated ahead of the front, at 20-25mph overnight. Winds gradually diminish through the day on Tuesday, before turning to the northwest the north by Wednesday morning, at 5-8mph. Moisture increases ahead of the front tonight, followed by drier air arriving by Wednesday. Minimum RH values will be in the 38 to 48 percent range Wednesday afternoon. Minimum RH values will fall below 30 percent both Thursday and Friday afternoons. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... Gadsden 58 69 47 69 / 90 90 10 10 Anniston 59 70 49 70 / 70 100 10 10 Birmingham 56 72 48 68 / 100 90 10 10 Tuscaloosa 58 74 48 70 / 100 60 0 0 Calera 57 72 49 70 / 90 90 10 10 Auburn 58 68 53 74 / 40 90 30 10 Montgomery 63 71 52 73 / 50 90 10 10 Troy 63 71 53 75 / 30 90 20 10 && .BMX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... Wind Advisory until 7 AM CDT Tuesday for the following counties: Fayette-Greene-Hale-Lamar-Marengo-Marion-Pickens-Sumter- Tuscaloosa-Walker-Winston. Wind Advisory until 10 AM CDT Tuesday for the following counties: Bibb-Blount-Calhoun-Cherokee-Chilton-Clay-Cleburne- Coosa-Dallas-Etowah-Jefferson-Perry-Randolph-Shelby-St. Clair- Talladega. Wind Advisory from 7 PM this evening to 10 AM CDT Tuesday for the following counties: Autauga-Chambers-Elmore-Lee-Lowndes- Macon-Montgomery-Tallapoosa. && SHORT TERM...86 LONG TERM....14 AVIATION...86
Hazardous Weather Outlook National Weather Service Birmingham AL 358 AM CDT Mon Mar 25 2024 ALZ011>015-017>050-261200- 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- 358 AM CDT Mon Mar 25 2024 This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for the counties served by the National Weather Service office in Birmingham. .DAY ONE...Outlook through Tonight. Showers and thunderstorms are forecast across Central Alabama Monday night into Tuesday morning. Severe thunderstorms are possible, mainly in the western and southern portions of the area. Damaging winds and tornadoes are possible. Additionally, locally heavy rainfall could result in flooding of low-lying or poor drainage areas, mainly for areas west of Interstate 65. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Tuesday through Sunday. No hazardous weather is expected at this time. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Activation of storm spotters and emergency management could be needed tonight and Tuesday morning.
Preliminary Local Storm Report
National Weather Service Birmingham AL
329 PM CDT Mon Mar 25 2024
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0324 PM Non-Tstm Wnd Dmg 3 SE Blanche 34.33N 85.57W
03/25/2024 Cherokee AL Emergency Mngr
A large tree was blown down and blocking the
road near CR 41.
&&
MALThe national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
3 strong wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Along Montgomery Highway at 3rd Ave S in Centreville, a tree limb fell due to strong gradient winds, striking a man in the head and resulting in a fatality.
Strong gradient winds resulted in trees falling across Highway 171 and Pikeville Road in Fayette County.
During the early morning of March 26, the steeple was blown off the roof of Hopewell Missionary Baptist Church, landing in the parking lot.
As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.
| Event | Date | Age | Sex | Where | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Strong Wind, Bibb | 2024-03-25 | 64 | Male | Under Tree | Direct |
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Alabama in 2024Every state in 2024This day in weather historyWarnings in Alabama, March 2024
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: 1159054, 1159057, 1159134.