Alabama’s top 5 wildest weather events of the decade

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WSFA) - 2019 is coming to an end and so is the decade. Over the past ten years, Alabama has had its fair share of wild weather, from extreme droughts to tornado outbreaks and even wintry precipitation. We’ve seen just about everything Mother Nature could have thrown our way.

Some were more impactful than others; below is a list of the First Alert Weather Team’s most unforgettable events over the past decade.

Number Five: Christmas Eve 2015 - Flooding across central/south Alabama

While it rained for the vast majority of the state, the most widespread rain fell across parts of our viewing area. Flash Flooding across the state caused major issues, with some spots recording upwards of 14″ or more of rain over a 4-day period (December 21st - December 26th).

Number Four: Drought of 2016

From too much rain to not enough, almost everyone in the state of Alabama was impacted by the historic drought of 2016. Fall was not only abnormally dry, but some places went almost two months without recording a drop of wet weather. There were over 1,100 wildfires during October and November along with both voluntary and mandatory water restrictions statewide. Unfortunately, many pastures and crops suffered.

Number Three: January 2014 - snow/ice across central Alabama

January 28th, 2014, is not a day people will soon forget. While we don’t see a lot of snow annually in Alabama, it’s not completely uncommon for us to see measurable snowfall. This event was impactful due to the 731 reported vehicle accidents across the state and the major travel headaches it caused not only for us but for other parts of the Deep South. Snowfall totals between 1-4″ were reported, and on top of that, there was a quarter of an inch of ice that didn’t make the situation any better.

Number Two: March 3rd, 2019 - Tornado Outbreak

In more recent memory, the severe weather that unfolded across parts of Alabama less than a year ago is still something people are currently recovering from. While there were over 40s tornadoes that day (12 of which happened here) the most talked about was the EF-4 tornado that ripped through Beauregard and Smith Station, killing 23 people and injuring 90.

Number One: April 27th, 2011 - Tornado Outbreak

A total of 62 tornadoes were recorded across Alabama that day and there were approximately 350 tornadoes overall, nationwide! Locally, this day will be remembered for the over 300 fatalities it caused. It still stands as the costliest tornado outbreak on record; damage was estimated at around $11 billion.

We as a team realize that this is a subjective list, and each and everyone of you have been impacted by weather here in Alabama over the past 10 years in same way.

We would like to thank you for trusting us over the past decade and we promise to work even harder at providing you with life-saving information as we head into the 2020s.

Copyright 2019 WSFA 12 News. All rights reserved.