Rain Returns Sunday As Karen Moves Inland

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WARM, DRY AFTERNOON: We have a partly sunny sky over Alabama this afternoon; nothing is showing up on radar over the northern two-thirds of the state, and temperatures are up in the mid 80s in most places. The weather looks great for high school football games tonight with only a very small risk of a shower over the western counties. Temperatures will fall into the 70s this evening once the sun goes down.

TROPICAL STORM KAREN AND OUR WEEKEND: Not much change in our overall thinking. Tomorrow will be mostly rain-free over the northern two-thirds of Alabama, with a mix of sun and clouds and a high in the low to mid 80s. A small shower could pop up in a few spots during the afternoon and evening hours, but they should be few and far between.

Tropical Storm Karen will clip the tip of Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana tomorrow night, and the circulation center will move over Gulf Shores Sunday morning. We should mention that Karen is disorganized, and will be well below hurricane strength at the time of landfall. Most places on the coast won’t have winds over 45 mph, so there won’t be any structural damage; heavy rain to the east of the circulation center is the main issue, where some spots could see over three inches of rain with some flooding possible. Of course, dangerous rip tides are already being reported on the coast from Dauphin Island over to Gulf Shores and on to Destin.

Also, a few isolated small tornadoes are possible near the coast along and east of where the center of Karen makes landfall.

The heaviest, most widespread rain on the coast will come late tomorrow, tomorrow night, and into Sunday morning. Conditions should improve along the coast beginning Sunday afternoon.

FOR OUR PART OF THE STATE: The bulk of the rain with Karen, and an approaching cold front, will come during the day Sunday. It won’t rain all day, but it could rain at any time during the day. For Birmingham, Tuscaloosa, Anniston, and Gadsden, rain amounts of around one inch are likely. The heavier totals will be down to the south….

We might have a little thunder in spots Sunday, but the risk of severe weather is very small for our part of the state. The rain will end Sunday evening, and drier and cooler arrives late Sunday night. Next week will feature delightful fall weather, with sunny pleasant days and clear, chilly nights. A good chance we visit the upper 40s early Tuesday morning.

FOOTBALL WEATHER: For the Alabama/Georgia State game at Bryant-Denny Stadium tomorrow (11:21a CT kickoff), expect a mix of sun and clouds with only a small risk of a shower during the game. About 80 at kickoff, with low 80s by the fourth quarter.

Auburn will host Ole Miss at Jordan-Hare Stadium tomorrow evening (6:00p CT kickoff); with the slower track of Karen it sure looks like rain won’t be a big issue. A brief, passing shower is possible, but the game should be played generally with dry conditions. Temperatures will fall slowly through the mid to upper 70s, and there will be a gusty south breeze of 10-15 mph.

UAB has a home game against Florida Atlantic tomorrow (2:00p CT kickoff) at Legion Field; the sky will be partly sunny with only a slight risk of a shower. We project 82 degrees at kickoff, and upper 70s by the final whistle.

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I had a great time today visiting the 7th graders at Helena Middle School…. be looking for them on the Pepsi KIDCAM today at 5:00 on ABC 33/40 News! My next Weather Xtreme video will be posted early Monday morning; Brian Peters will have the video updates tomorrow and Sunday. Enjoy the weekend!

Tags: karen

Category: Alabama's Weather