High chance of snow in Alabama: A winter warning has been issued ahead of dangerously cold temperatures

The National Weather Service says several inches of snow could fall in parts of south Alabama on Tuesday, and a winter storm watch has been issued for many areas.

As of Sunday morning, parts of north Alabama saw light snow, but the weather service does not expect widespread travel problems or accumulations. A second, more significant round of snow will be possible starting Tuesday morning, and it will be aimed at south Alabama.

Briskly cold temperatures are expected across the state tonight and over the next few days, with extreme cold warnings issued for several areas.

A cold weather advisory will be in effect for much of the rest of the state.

Here are the forecasters’ key points:

• As of Sunday morning, Tuesday’s snow totals were still uncertain, but forecasters are increasingly confident the southern half of the state will have to deal with wintry precipitation beginning Tuesday morning and continuing into early Wednesday. Two to three centimeters of snow is possible.
• North Alabama may not get any snow this time around, and as of Sunday, snow levels up north were still in question.
• A winter storm watch has been issued for all of south Alabama and south central Alabama. They will take effect on Tuesday.
• Very hazardous traffic is expected through areas experiencing winter precipitation on Tuesday. Forecasters warn that due to low temperatures, only a little snow will be dangerous on the roads. Icy roads may remain in some areas until Wednesday.
• Temperatures will be dangerously cold tonight and the next few nights. A severe cold warning has been issued for several central Alabama counties, including the Birmingham metro area.

Here are the details:

The weather service said cold air continued to move into Alabama on Sunday, with the coldest temperatures of the winter expected tonight into Monday morning.

Lows tonight will range from the mid-teens in northern Alabama to the mid-teens in central Alabama and into the low 20s as far as the Gulf Coast.

Single figures could be seen in several places.

Below are the expected low temperatures tonight:

According to the weather service, it will be even colder due to the wind, with temperatures as low as 5 degrees below zero possible in some parts of northern Alabama.

For that reason, the weather service has issued a cold weather warning for much of the state.

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An Extreme Cold Warning will be in effect for parts of east-central Alabama, including the Birmingham metro area, meaning dangerously cold winds are expected.

Very cold temperatures are also possible on Monday, with many places staying below freezing all day.

Here are the top predictions for Monday:

Another very cold night is expected Monday into Tuesday morning.

The weather service expects temperatures to drop back into the teens in north and central Alabama and into the low 20s in south Alabama.

Here are Monday night’s lows:

A winter storm begins on Tuesday.

The weather service expects wintry precipitation to begin in southwest Alabama late Tuesday morning and move north and east during the afternoon Tuesday.

The precipitation is expected to stop late Tuesday or early Wednesday.

However, with temperatures still cold, any precipitation could linger for a while.

Here are the predicted highs for Tuesday:

Here’s what the National Weather Service is expecting in Alabama:

SOUTH ALABAMA

• Winter storm watch Tuesday morning through Tuesday night for Choctaw, Washington, Clark, Wilcox, Monroe, Conecuah, Butler, Crenshaw, Escambia, Covington, Mobile and Baldwin counties. The National Weather Service in Mobile reported snow and sleet totals of 1 to 3 inches, with possible ice accumulations around light icing.
• Cold weather warning from 9:00 p.m. Sunday to 11:00 a.m. Monday for Choctaw, Washington, Clark, Wilcox, Monroe, Conecua, Butler, Crenshaw, Escambia, Covington, Mobile and Baldwin counties. Cooling down to 8 degrees is possible.
• Cold weather warning for Coffee, Dale, Geneva, Henry and Houston counties from 9 p.m. Sunday to noon Monday. A severe frost warning will be in effect for the same counties from midnight until 8 a.m. Monday. According to the National Weather Service in Tallahassee, a low of 14 degrees is expected tonight, with a high of 24 degrees.

The National Weather Service in Mobile said Sunday that confidence in south Alabama’s winter precipitation continues to increase, but there are still big questions about what the main precipitation type will be (snow, sleet, freezing rain).

“All guidance in the ensemble is focused on a high chance (70-80%) of achieving, if not exceeding, 2 inches over much of the area,” the weather service said during a Sunday forecast discussion.

“The real uncertainty is whether we’ll see more of a wintry mix that will reduce snow totals but increase the accumulation of freezing rain and sleet.

“In any case, given the colder air mass ahead of winter precipitation, local roads won’t need much accumulation.”

The weather service says the most likely time for wintry precipitation to begin is late Tuesday morning and end by sunrise Wednesday.

CENTRAL ALABAMA

• Winter storm watch Tuesday morning until late Tuesday night for Autauga, Barbour, Bibb, Bullock, Chambers, Chilton, Coosa, Dallas, Elmore, Greene, Hale, Lee, Lowndes, Macon, Marengo, Montgomery, Perry, Pike, Randolph, Russell, Sumter and Tallapoosa County.

The National Weather Service in Birmingham said light to moderate snow was forecast with total accumulations of up to 3 inches.

• Severe cold warning from midnight today to 11 a.m. Monday for Blount, Calhoun, Cherokee, Cleburne, Etowah, Jefferson and St. Clair counties. In these areas, cooling down to zero is possible.
• Cold Weather Warning from midnight tonight until 11 AM Monday for Autauga, Barbour, Bibb, Bullock, Chambers, Chilton, Clay, Coosa, Dallas, Elmore, Fayette, Greene, Hale, Lamar, Lee, Lowndes, Macon, Marengo, Marion , Montgomery , Perry, Pickens, Pike, Randolph, Russell, Shelby, Sumter, Counties Talladega, Tallapoosa, Tuscaloosa, Walker and Winston. Cooling down to 2 degrees is possible.

The weather service expects the cold temperatures to last most of the week.

The chance of accumulating snow continued to increase across much of central Alabama overnight Tuesday, forecasters said.

“Our official totals have changed slightly, but the impact on roads has remained the same. As temperatures drop into the 10s to 20s on Tuesday night, travel impacts may occur anywhere there is snow accumulation,” the weather service said.

NORTH ALABAMA

• Cold weather warning from midnight tonight to noon Monday for all of north Alabama. The National Weather Service in Huntsville said overnight temperatures would drop to 8 to 12 degrees, with winds of 10 mph with gusts near 20 mph making temperatures 0 to 5 below zero.

The National Weather Service in Huntsville was receiving reports of light snow in northern Alabama as of Sunday morning. However, any accumulation is expected to remain north of Alabama into Tennessee.

As for Tuesday’s winter, forecasters expect that the bulk of the snow will remain in the south of the region, no accumulation is expected.