Two rounds of rain and storms will be possible across the northern part of Alabama on Thursday, according to forecasters.
There will be the possibility of a few severe storms in both rounds, and the strongest storms could have damaging winds and hail. Tornadoes are not expected.
The first round of storms could begin to affect north Alabama this afternoon, and another round will be possible overnight and into Friday morning.
The National Weather Service continued to note that the threat for severe weather was a low-confidence one, and the timing is also more uncertain than usual.
No severe weather is expected in south Alabama, and that region may not even see any rain.
NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center has added a Level 2 out of 5 (or slight) risk for severe weather for northwest Alabama today and a Level 1 (marginal) risk for severe weather for the northern third of Alabama today, from roughly Tuscaloosa and Birmingham northward.
There will also be a Level 1 risk for parts of north and central Alabama on Friday.
A Level 2 risk means that scattered severe storms will be possible. Isolated severe storms will be possible in the Level 1 area.
The National Weather Service in Huntsville said northwest Alabama has the best chance for seeing strong storms.
Forecasters said a cold front approaching the state will be to blame for expected rain and storms. Scattered storms are expected to develop this afternoon ahead of the front, and then a broken line of storms is expected overnight into Friday morning.
The weather service added that neither round of storms looks better or worse than the other, and both could cause damaging winds and hail.
Those storms could reach the northwest part of the state by 3 p.m. today and push eastward through the rest of the afternoon and into tonight.
Here’s the timing for north Alabama from the weather service:
Here's when storms could affect north Alabama.NWS
The second round of storms is expected to move through early Friday morning, and the Storm Prediction Center also has a Level 1 risk for parts of north and central Alabama on Friday.
Here’s the severe weather outlook for Friday:
A Level 1 risk for severe weather will continue into Friday.SPC
The weather service said the second line of storms is expected to continue pushing eastward across the state after sunrise on Friday morning.
The second round of storms could enter northwest Alabama by midnight Friday and continue eastward.
The weather service will be watching that line in case it can intensify later Friday during the heat of the day as it sags south and eastward.
More wet weather is expected on Saturday and into Sunday, and on Sunday even south Alabama could see some rain.
As of Thursday morning the Storm Prediction Center has not added a risk for severe storms into the forecast for any part of Alabama for the weekend.
Drier and cooler weather is expected to take hold in the state by Monday.