West Alabama Thursday Briefing
It is Thursday January 4, 2024. With temperatures in the upper 20s this morning a Freezing Fog Advisory was issued for low visibility and potential frost on bridges in Bibb and Perry Counties in West Alabama. That advisory ran until 8:00 this morning.
The rainy day expected yesterday was basically a bust and it did little to end the ongoing drought. The newest U.S. Drought Monitor reveal that most of West Alabama continues in Severe Drought. Two counties, Greene and Perry are mostly in an area classified as Moderate Drought.
Keep your fingers crossed, ABC3340 Chief Meteorologist James Spann tells there will be a more significant weather pattern bringing rain to West Alabama and possible severe storms to South Alabama Friday and again Monday. Spann says computer models are forecasting two to four inches of rainfall possible.
The Forecast:
Today: Fair weather across West Alabama with high temperatures in the middle 50s.
Tonight: Mostly clear, with a low around 29. Northeast wind around 5 mph.
Friday: Showers likely after noon. Increasing clouds, with a high near 55. Southeast wind 5 to 15 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible.
Friday Night: Showers. Low around 46. Breezy, with an east wind 15 to 20 mph becoming west 10 to 15 mph after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 30 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%.
Saturday: Mostly cloudy, with a high near 57. West wind around 10 mph.
Saturday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 39.
Sunday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 56.
Sunday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 35.
Monday: Showers likely after noon. Partly sunny, with a high near 56. Breezy. Chance of precipitation is 60%.
Monday Night: Showers and possibly a thunderstorm. Some of the storms could produce heavy rainfall. Low around 47. Breezy. Chance of precipitation is 100%.
Tuesday - Wednesday: Showers and breezy during the day Tuesday with a high near 60. Rain ends Tuesday night with a low in the mid 30s. Mostly sunny conditions Wednesday and low 50s expected Wednesday.
Topping the News:
Marion residents are again lining up to get bottled water in the wake of low water pressure caused by two malfunctioning water pumps in the aging system. The Perry County Commission spent $5,000 to purchase 4,000 bottles of water to hand out in the town of just over 3,000 residents and those outside the city limits who are impacted.
ADEM has approved two grants to begin repairs but have yet to receive the required paperwork. The state agency has advised the city to issue a boil water order until water pressure can be restored, and its safety certified by ADEM.
Alabama and 7 other southern states continue to record extremely high numbers of respiratory illness cases. COVID19 and RSV cases have risen but it is flu that is sending increasing numbers of Alabamians to hospitals.
Alabama Hospital Association President Dr. Donald Williamson blames holiday parties and weariness from taking proper precautions for the spread of flu cases.
271 patients are currently hospitalized from the flu in Alabama, hundreds more have been treated and are recovering at home.
2024 is an election year but West Alabama will get a jump on the national voting with a special election Tuesday for Legislative House District 16. Republican Northport attorney Bryan Brinyark will face off against Democrat Fayette County Commissioner John Underwood.
Tuesday’s special election is needed to fill the unexpired term of Kyle South who resigned his seat to become President and CEO of the Chamber of Commerce of West Alabama.
The district encompasses Fayette, NE Tuscaloosa and Southwest Jefferson Counties.
The City of Tuscaloosa's Human Resources Department will hold a Career Fair on Thursday, January 11, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Tuscaloosa River Market. Members of the Human Resources Department will be present to help those interested to complete applications.
Interviews will be conducted on-site Construction, Facilities, and Grounds Crew Workers, Concrete Finisher, Fleet Services Mechanic, Water and Sewer Crew Worker, Arts and Entertainment, Environmental Services And other positions. For questions, you can call Tuscaloosa 311.
50-year-old Terrill L. Wrenn of Berry died 10 miles north of Northport on U.S. 69 Monday. ALEA reported the one-car fatal crash occurred at approximately 10:30 a.m.
An early Wednesday morning fire in Eutaw completely destroyed a house in the Greene County town. The occupant was out of town at the time, but she lost everything.
Eutaw Fire Chief Bennie Adams believes cause of the blaze could be a space heater left on. A full investigation is underway.
A bomb threat made against Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia and five other state capitol buildings has been declared a hoax by the FBI. Threats were taken seriously after U-S Homeland Security announced a significant spike in internal and external threats against the U-S.
The Druid City Arts Festival doesn’t take place until April 5th and 6th, but artist and live performer applications are being accepted until next Wednesday. The free two-day festival at Government Plaza downtown is hosted by the City of Tuscaloosa that highlights local artists and musicians. Click on druidcityartsfestival.com for more information.
In Sports:
From UA Athletics: The Alabama women's basketball team (13-2) will host Ole Miss (10-3) for the start of the Southeastern Conference campaign tonight. The Crimson Tide and the Rebels will tipoff on SEC Network+ at 6 p.m. CST at Coleman Coliseum.
You can also hear the game on Crimson Tide Sports Network.
From UA Athletics: Alabama head coach Nick Saban was selected as a finalist for the George Munger Coach of the Year Award, the Maxwell Football Club announced Wednesday.
Saban is joined by David Braun (Northwestern), Kalen DeBoer (Washington), Mike Norvell (Florida State) and Steve Sarkisian (Texas) to make up the five finalists for the George Munger Coach of the Year Award, which recognizes the top coach in college football each year. The 2023 winner will be announced on Jan. 10.
Alabama has had two winners of the George Munger Award, first with Gene Stallings in 1992 followed by Saban in 2016.
Tide Coach Nick Saban is holding his annual post-season meeting with Crimson Tide Football players to determine their future with the team.
Numerous players, most who did not play much, have already announced they are entering the transfer portal, more are possible.
Have a terrific Thursday !!
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