re: Southeast Severe Weather Threat - 1/12/23

Man survives Selma tornado in car

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SELMA, Ala. —

A man trying to get to shelter from the storm today says he was inside his car when an apparent tornado hit Selma Thursday.

"I thought it was all over for me," Bobby Green told WVTM 13's Brittany Decker.

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"It happened so fast. By the time I got ready to open my door and try to go inside the store, the door blew back, and within three to four minutes, it was all over. All the rubble was on top of me, and I had to climb out of the passenger side window."

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NWS Huntsville found an EF1 that was on the ground for 30 miles up my way in Lawrence, Morgan, and Limestone counties.

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James Spann
@spann

North of Prattville today in Autauga County… photo from Paul Nodhturft

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Is there a reason why Alabama (but not Louisiana or Mississippi) seems to always get hit by severe tornado outbreaks?

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Though, Mississippi sees just as many, or more,tornadoes than Alabama

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MS and AL are peak Dixie Alley for tornadoes.

Been a lot of cities over there wiped off the map over the last 10-15 years. Not sure if it’s a cycle or what but it seems like the storms have shifted away from OK/KS/TX to AL/MS/N LA.

I couldn't tell you the exact numbers, but "Tornado Alley" has been quieter over recent years. "Dixie Alley" has always been a thing, though.

Tornadoarchive.com is a good place to go poke around to get a good look at tornado distribution. You can search by date and other parameters.

This is a map of all documented tornadoes they have loaded on there dated back to 1680. It isn't perfect, but is the best I can do on a phone.



ETA: It is much more detailed when narrowed down, and they are adding more and more detail to it all the time.

Do tornados give a shite about topography? Or I guess weather in general. I live right in the heart of Alabama and both houses have been near a ridgeline (double oak mtn and shades crest)

Looks like every tornado that comes by just rides along the ridge of the mountain.

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Do tornados give a shite about topography?

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Yes. There's currently all sorts of research going into that. Yesterday had an example of just that. In North AL, after the line passed, a few storms developed and moved east. One of them moved north of me and got warned for hail. That warning got dropped, but the storm meandered east into the Sand Mountain area of NE AL. It got to the Ider area, which is in the foothills of the Appalachians and immediately formed a rotation, got warned, and had a confirmed tornado within 15 minutes give or take.

That happens time and again in that area, but it has only relatively recently (within the past ten years or so) started drawing the attention it deserves. The local topography helps provide lift and/or shear that can help a storm's rotation form or tighten.

So guess who I just met