Dan's Wild Wild Science Journal

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If you live in one, have a NOAA radio that is programmed properly, and a place to go to during a tornado watch.

Never, ever, stay in one during a tornado warning.

Any questions?

Thanks to the unnamed gentleman who gave me these pictures of the damage from the Albertville, AL tornado Saturday night.

Church in Dekalb County Alabama after the EF3 tornado Saturday. Pic taken by Katie Johnson.

The last several posts have been about the high risk of tornadoes over the Southeastern United States on Saturday.

Library in Albertville, AL. Image from Teresa Reno.

You probably have already heard of the tornado that hit Yazoo City in Mississippi . It left 10 dead and horrible damage.

Later Saturday night, the tornadoes dropped again from new thunderstorms. These were much closer to home. We were on the air many hours as the storms moved across North Alabama into NW Georgia.

There were three EF 3 tornadoes across North Alabama. Storm survey teams from the national Weather Service in Huntsville estimated the winds were at around 140 mph.

The twister that hit Albertville was at one point over  1 km wide!

Image courtesy Teresa Reno in Albertville.

The Albertville Tornado was on the ground for nearly 30 km. It caused major damage in Albertville, and in the Dekalb County town of Geraldine.

I know a lot of people have had their lives turned upside down by these storms. There were 30+ injuries, but thankfully no deaths!

I cannot begin to tell you how happy that makes those of us who forecast them. I include those of us on TV and the meteorologists who work for NOAA.

What a tornado looks like on radar. Radar image showing strong rotation as a tornado hits Albertville Alabama. Courtesy Plymouth College NEXRAD Archive data.

Major damage and some injuries are being reported in Albertville, Alabama and in Geraldine Alabama from a tornado Saturday night. These tornadoes follow the twister that hit Yazoo City in Mississippi on Saturday afternoon. That storm left 10 dead.

First guess tornado track across NE Alabama Saturday night. Google maps.

The image above is showing winds toward and away from the radar. I circled the velocity couplet showing very strong winds toward the radar next to winds in the opposite direction. Early indications are that the tornado was on the ground for many miles. This would be the second long track tornado of the day with Yazoo City being the first.

The severe weather threat is finally beginning to lessen but more tornadoes are still possible in Georgia and South Alabama overnight…

After 13 hours in front of a radar screen, it is time to get some sleep….The rescue squads are just getting started. Let’s hope there were no deaths…

The bottom circle is the storm producing a large tornado. This storm is now in Alabama. Another super cell is circled to the north in Western TN. Hi res visible Image from NASA GOES down link.

Reports of heavy damage in Mississippi continue to come in. Madison Parish and Yazoo City seem to be the hardest hit. There were reports of cars blown off the road along Interstate 55 in Central Miss. Update 6PM Huntsville time: 7 deaths in Yazoo City reported. Video shows widespread severe damage.

The Storm Prediction Center in Norman Oklahoma has upgraded the moderate risk of severe weather to a HIGH RISK for a large area of North and Western Alabama and much of Mississippi for Saturday.

Numerical weather models are indicating that conditions will be very favourable for tornadoes Saturday in Alabama. The "Significant Tornado Algorithm" is unusually high for a severe weather event.

New model guidance tonight indicates that wind shear and instability will be very conducive for the formation of super-cell thunderstorms and some long track tornadoes.

The greatest threat will exist from mid morning Saturday through the early evening hours over the high risk area. A large moderate risk area surrounds the high risk.

If you live in a mobile home in the high risk area, you should make plans to go to a better shelter when a tornado watch is issued. Your risk of being injured is much higher in a mobile home.

A very strong low level jet stream is already developing tonight and this will aide in supplying a deep layer of warm moist air to the region ahead of a strong cold front. The winds are increasing with height and are also veering from south to west as you get higher. This combination will allow thunderstorms to grow very strong and last for several hours.

Winds aloft measured by the Doppler Radar in Columbus Miss. Notice the winds near the ground are from the SE while at 11,000 feet they are from the west at 50 kts. Each hash on the flag is 10 kts. A triangle is 50 kts.

Any severe storms or tornadoes that develop will be moving from southwest to northeast at speeds of 80-90 km/hr (50 mph+).

Be safe,
Dan