Statement from the Birmingham NWS for Central Alabama.

THE MAJOR IMPACTS FROM THIS FORECAST WILL BE THE POTENTIAL WINTER STORM LATE WEDNESDAY INTO EARLY THURSDAY. THE GFS...ECMWF AND GEM HAVE COME INTO MUCH BETTER AGREEMENT WITH THE TIMING OF THE SYSTEM AND THE LOW LEVEL COLD AIR MOVING IN BEHIND THE FRONT. THE COLD
FRONT SHOULD MOVE INTO NORTHWESTERN PORTIONS OF CENTRAL ALABAMA
WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON WITH TEMPERATURES DECREASING RAPIDLY WEDNESDAY EVENING INTO THE OVERNIGHT HOURS. AS THE UPPER LEVEL TROUGHS PHASE AN INCREDIBLE UPPER LEVEL JET IN EXCESS OF 180 KTS DEVELOPS ACROSS
THE OHIO RIVER VALLEY INTO THE NORTHEAST. THIS WILL PUT ALABAMA IN THE RIGHT ENTRANCE REGION OF AN INCREDIBLE JET. THIS MEANS THERE WILL BE AMPLE SYNOPTIC SUPPORT FOR POST-FRONTAL PRECIPITATION TO CONTINUE. MODEL SOUNDINGS INDICATES PW VALUES OVER 1 INCH WITH
SURFACE TEMPERATURES FALLING INTO THE 20S. A WARM NOSE IS PRESENT ON THE SOUNDINGS OF AROUND 5 DEGREES CELSIUS. THEREFORE...EXPECT THE
MAIN PRECIPITATION TYPE WILL BE FREEZING RAIN. THE WARM NOSE BEGINS TO COOL SOME EARLY THURSDAY AND THERE COULD BE A BRIEF MIXTURE OF SNOW AND SLEET BEFORE PRECIPITATION ENDS BUT EXPECT THE MAJORITY OF THE POST-FRONTAL PRECIPITATION WILL BE FREEZING RAIN. ALL OF THESE
PARAMETERS ARE BEGINNING TO COME IN LINE FOR ANOTHER WINTER STORM.
EXPECT THE MAIN IMPACTS WILL BE ALONG AND NORTH OF THE I-59 CORRIDOR
ALTHOUGH SOME OF THE LATEST MODELS SUGGEST WINTRY PRECIPITATION
COULD BE A LITTLE BIT FURTHER TO THE SOUTH. EXPECT THIS EVENT WILL HAVE MORE IMPACTS THAN THE PREVIOUS EVENT DUE TO THE PRECIPITATION TYPE. IN ADDITION...WINDS WILL BE AROUND 10-20 MPH AND COULD CAUSE
MORE ISSUES WITH TREES AND POWER-LINES IF THE EVENT UNFOLDS AS THE CURRENT MODELS INDICATE. PLEASE CHECK BACK FOR THE LATEST UPDATES WITH THE EVENT STILL BEING OVER 4 DAYS AWAY. MODELS INDICATE THAT TEMPERATURES WILL REMAIN NEAR TO BELOW FREEZING ACROSS AREAS ALONG
AND NORTH OF I-59 THROUGHOUT THE DAY THURSDAY AND SOME LOCATIONS MAY
NOT GO ABOVE FREEZING UNTIL FRIDAY AFTERNOON.