West Alabama Thursday Briefing
It is Thursday, November 30, 2023. The last day of the month will mark the beginning of a warm-up that will bring rain chances and potential severe weather over the next few days. But the good news is 1" to 2" of precipitation is expected to end the drought and the wildfire threat across the state.
The NOAA National Drought Mitigation Center released their Current Drought Monitor this morning. It shows the area of Extreme Drought has shrunken due to recent rainfall but still covers Tuscaloosa, Pickens and Bibb counties as well as large portions of Walker, Lamar and Fayette counties. The remainder of West Alabama is still listed in Severe Drought.
Today's wildfire map from the Alabama Forestry Commission shows no wildfires in West Alabama and just ten in North Alabama as of this morning.
While the coming rainfall will be beneficial there could be a scattered shower of two for tomorrow night's AHSAA Football Playoff games. The winners of those games will head to Tuscaloosa next week for the championship games.
The Forecast:
Today: Fair skies across West Alabama today with high temperatures near 60.
Tonight: Showers, with thunderstorms also possible after 3am. Low around 49. Southeast wind 10 to 15 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90%. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.
Friday: Showers and possibly a thunderstorm before noon, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms after noon. High near 70. South wind 5 to 15 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
High School Football Friday Night: A chance of showers and thunderstorms, then showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm after midnight. Cloudy, with a low around 60. Southeast wind 5 to 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%.
Saturday: Showers and possibly a thunderstorm before noon, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms after noon. High near 70. Southeast wind 5 to 10 mph becoming west in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 80%.
SEC Championship Game in Atlanta: Showers and possibly a thunderstorm. High near 66. South wind 5 to 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%.
Saturday Night: A 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Cloudy, with a low around 58.
Remainder of Weekend into the New Work Week: Chances of rain Sunday and Sunday night with a high near 68 and low around 46. The sun will return Monday with a high of 63 with a low of 40 and partly cloudy skies during the evening.
Controversy over the site for the Kentuck Arts Festival erupted after organization officials announced they were looking for a new site for the nationally acclaimed October event. The festival has been at Kentuck Park just off Bobby Cardinal Airport Road for 52 years but a statement from Kentuck claimed the new youth sports complex to be built would replace Kentuck Park.
Northport Council President Jeff Hogg told the Steve and DC Morning Show on 95.3 "The Bear" this morning, that is not true. He said the new facility will be on separate property but did add that construction of the new complex could result in some temporary inconvenience.
President Hogg told the morning program that the city is willing to extend their agreement with Kentuck for five years and hopes something can be worked out.
Tuscaloosa County government officials are among 400 county leaders statewide meeting for a second day in Auburn to iron out their objectives for the coming 2024 legislative session.
Among the initiatives are more state funding for the 9-8-8 lifeline which people can contact for mental health assistance and critical intervention training for first responders, allowing 9-1-1 districts to coordinate public safety answering points to provide emergency response services more efficiently, modernization of juvenile justice procedures, authorization of changes in local official's compensation, and accountability and qualifications for Boards of Registrars.
Tuscaloosa County Commission Jerry Tingle was named to the ACCA 2023-24 Legislative Committee. Other members from West Alabama include Hon. Charles Caddell—Bibb, Hon. Mike Freeman—Fayette, Hon. Allen Turner—Greene, Hon. Arthur Crawford—Hale, Hon. Jeff Long—Lamar, Hon. Calvin Martin—Marengo, Hon. Albert Turner—Perry, Hon. Drew Elmore—Pickens, Hon. Tommie Armistead—Sumter, and Hon. Steve Miller—Walker County.
The Anti-Defamation League is blasting the Alabama Democratic Party for an online ad that likens Alabama GOP Sen. Tommy Tuberville to Adolph Hitler. The league claims the ad attacking Tuberville’s hold on military promotions trivializes the Holocaust for political purposes.
Iowa Republican Senator Joni Ernst has told CBS that Tuberville’s promotions hold due to the Pentagon’s abortion policy does not have the backing of his own party. She worries that Tuberville's battle with the military is coming at an exceedingly dangerous time in the world when the U.S. needs the best military leaders in place.
Tuberville has reportedly told fellow Republican Senators in a closed-door meeting that he is attempting to find a way to resolve the issue. "I got you into this miss and I will try to get you out", is what Tuberville reportedly told attendees.
Anti-Semitic incidents in Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina and Tennessee grew by 120 percent in 2022 and are on pace to exceed that number this year according to a release from the Anti-Defamation League.
The available slots for families to request Toys for Tots in West Alabama this Christmas were taken within 36 hours of being made available. That proves there is a significant need.
To meet the demand, the 7th Annual Toys for Tots Unique Custom car, truck and bike show is set for Saturday between 9 and 2. Admission for the event behind University Mall will be $20.00 or a new unwrapped toy of equal value.
West Alabama Toys for Tots serves Tuscaloosa, Greene, Hale, Pickens, Lamar, Fayette, and Sumter Counties
You can donate to this year's campaign by clicking the Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots website.
In Sports:
ESPN has developed a path to the College Football Playoff for Alabama. 1st, Bama has to beat Georgia. If that happens, they predict there is a 41 to 43% chance if Texas and Florida State win Saturday, chances improve to 80% if Texas loses and 85% if only FSU loses. The strongest possibility is obvious. The Tide has a 95% chance if both the Longhorns and Seminoles lose.
The odds on the SEC Championship Game continue to widen. Georgia initially opened up as a 4.5-point favorite over the Crimson Tide, and now, less than a week out, the Bulldogs are currently listed as a consensus 6.5-point favorite. The over/under currently sits at 55.5 points.
From UA Athletics: The Alabama women's basketball team will make its debut in the first-ever ACC/SEC Challenge when it takes on Syracuse tonight at JMA Wireless Dome. The Crimson Tide and Orange will meet for the first time with tipoff set for 6 p.m. CST.
Over the opening eight games, Alabama scored 598 points (74.8 ppg) which ranks third amongst the Southeastern Conference and 24th nationally. The Tide also ranks 12th in the nation in scoring defense, holding opponents to 50.1 ppg.
With last night’s 80-75 upset of 7th ranked Duke by unranked Arkansas, the SEC and ACC ended the first ever men's basketball challenge competition in a 7-7 tie.
Have a terrific Thursday and ROLL TIDE!!
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