Watch For Black Ice Sunday Morning

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PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
843 PM CST FRI DEC 10 2010

…BLACK ICE POSSIBLE OVERNIGHT EARLY SUNDAY MORNING AND POSSIBLY
AGAIN SUNDAY NIGHT…

A COLD FRONT WILL MOVE ACROSS CENTRAL ALABAMA SATURDAY NIGHT. THE
STORM SYSTEM IS EXPECTED TO BRING ANYWHERE FROM ONE HALF TO ONE
INCH OF RAINFALL ACROSS THE AREA. A FEW AREAS MAY RECEIVE SLIGHTLY
HIGHER TOTALS. THIS RAINFALL IS EXPECTED TO PRODUCE RATHER
SATURATED GROUND CONDITIONS AREA WIDE. SOME PONDING OF WATER
COULD BE POSSIBLE ACROSS THE AREA ESPECIALLY IN LOW LYING AND
NORMAL DRAINAGE AREAS. ADDITIONALLY…AREAS THAT NORMALLY
EXPERIENCE RUNOFF MAY STILL BE WET ONCE THE COLDER AIR MOVES INTO
THE REGION.

DURING SATURDAY NIGHT…THE COLD FRONT IS EXPECTED TO MAKE
SUFFICIENT PROGRESS TO PUSH SUB FREEZING TEMPERATURES INTO AREAS
GENERALLY NORTH OF INTERSTATE 59 IN THE PRE DAWN HOURS WHICH COULD
LEAD TO BLACK ICE ON SOME AREA ROADWAYS AS WATER DRAINS.
TEMPERATURES ARE NOT EXPECTED TO RISE ABOVE THE LOWER TO MID 30S
ON SUNDAY IN THIS AREA FOR DAYTIME HIGHS.

ON SUNDAY NIGHT…MUCH LOWER READINGS IN THE MID TEENS TO LOWER
20S ARE EXPECTED ACROSS ALL OF CENTRAL ALABAMA. ALTHOUGH CONDITIONS
ARE EXPECTED TO BE DRYING OUT SIGNIFICANTLY AT THIS TIME…SOME
LINGERING RUN OFF MOISTURE COULD STILL BE PRESENT. ANY MOISTURE
REMAINING ON AREA ROADWAYS…BRIDGES…AND OVERPASSES WILL FREEZE
OVERNIGHT SUNDAY NIGHT PRODUCING BLACK ICE. BLACK ICE IS SIMPLY
WATER THAT FREEZES INTO ICE ON ROADWAYS. THIS ICE IS VERY HARD TO
SEE ON THE DARKER ROADWAY SURFACES AND CAN BE EXTREMELY DANGEROUS.
THIS BLACK ICE SHOULD NOT BE WIDESPREAD SUNDAY NIGHT BUT MORE
ISOLATED IN NATURE. THEREFORE…ANYONE TRAVELING OVERNIGHT SHOULD
EXERCISE EXTRA CAUTION AND BE AWARE THAT ICY PATCHES MAY EXISTS.

FOR UPDATED INFORMATION ON ROAD CONDITIONS…PLEASE VISIT THE ALABAMA
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION WEB PAGE AT WWW.DOT.STATE.AL.US

Tags: black ice

Category: Winter Weather