CENTRAL ALABAMA — Forecasters are closely monitoring a potentially dangerous early-morning weather setup for central Alabama on Friday as a strong line of showers and thunderstorms moves through the region, bringing the risk of damaging wind gusts and a low-end tornado threat.
Weather models, including the HRRR, are showing an increasingly aggressive signal for a fast-moving squall line developing overnight and pushing east through Alabama during the pre-dawn and morning hours Friday.
Strong Line of Storms Showing on High-Resolution Models
High-resolution radar simulations indicate a well-organized line of heavy showers and thunderstorms extending across portions of Mississippi and moving into central Alabama early Friday. The strongest storms within this line could produce damaging straight-line winds, especially as colder air surges in behind the front.
Several HRRR panels show intense reflectivity cores aligned with strong low-level wind fields, a setup that can support embedded severe wind gusts even without classic supercell storms.
Sleeper Tornado Risk Cannot Be Ruled Out
While widespread severe weather is not guaranteed, forecasters are paying close attention to central Alabama for what is being described as a “sleeper” tornado threat…