A December tornado outbreak in the south

So far, a total of 11 tornadoes have been reported in Louisiana and Mississippi from the line of severe weather that is moving across the southeast. The system didn't sleep through the night, and I'm certain denied sleep to many others as tornado sirens and weather radios blared warnings of imminent danger. Here are just a few of the reports from the storm.

SEVERAL HOMES WITH ROOF DAMAGE ALONG WITH NUMEROUS TREES AND POWER LINES BLOWN DOWN IN OAK HILL AREA. -Hineston, LA

HOUSES AND A CHURCH DAMAGED. -Coxburg, MS

ONE HOME DESTROYED. -Hamburg, MS

... and like I said, more to come. Already, we have seen some tornado warnings this morning as the system moves through Alabama, and a slight risk for severe weather has been outlined over almost all of lower Alabama (LA).We are not in an official severe threat, at this time, but there are warnings that some of our storms could reach severe parameters, and as the system makes its way across the south, things could change in our outlook. Stay tuned.

9:20AM: Got this report from Meso Mike...

IF EITHER MOISTURE OR INSTABILITY IS UNDER FORECAST ACROSS THE FL PANHANDLE INTO SRN GA THEN A SLIGHT RISK WILL CERTAINLY BE WARRANTED FOR THE POSSIBILITY FOR TORNADOES AND DAMAGING WIND GUSTS WITH ANY SUPERCELL DEVELOPMENT.

The slight risk has been shifted to include my neck of the woods now... happy, Rick? Have at it! I've got a solid stratus deck now that will inhibit instability and really most likely prevent a severe outbreak here, but what do I know?

AS LOW LEVEL MOISTURE CONTINUES TO STREAM INLAND FROM THE GULF OF MEXICO...INSTABILITY COUPLED WITH AVAILABLE SHEAR SHOULD RESULT IN A CONTINUED THREAT FOR STRONG/SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS THRU THE DAYLIGHT HOURS SERN AL INTO GA AND NRN FL. SHEAR PROFILES WILL CONTINUE FAVORABLE FOR SUPERCELLS AND ISOLATED TORNADOES.

THE STRENGTH OF THE DEEPENING SYSTEM AND ASSOCIATED WIND FIELDS SUPPORT THE POTENTIAL FOR A SQUALL LINE REACHING THE WRN COAST OF NRN FL AND THE PANHANDLE PRIOR TO 12Z THU. ACCORDINGLY A SLIGHT RISK HAS BEEN INTRODUCED THIS AREA FOR AFTER 06Z FOR PRIMARILY WIND DAMAGE POTENTIAL AND ISOLATED TORNADOES.

The tornado watch remains a couple of hundred miles to my west, but it is creeping this way as the system forces its way eastward.

Continuing my education...

12:20PM: A mesoscale discussion was just issued for the south regarding this storm system. It appears that I fall just outside the area which is expected to see tornadic action later today.

THE BAND OF SLOW MOVING TSTMS WILL PROBABLY MAINTAIN SOME CHARACTER. SUFFICIENT DEEP/LOW-LVL SHEAR WILL EXIST TO SUPPORT A FEW EMBEDDED ROTATING STORMS WITH BRIEF TORNADOES/DMGG WIND GUSTS.

The arctic blast pushing this storm our way is hot cold on the heels of this squall line, bringing a yucky wintery mix to Mississippi and eastward.... meaning, it will be cold again soon.

12:45PM: Got a text from Alabama Mike that the National Weather Service office in Birmingham, AL confirmed an EF-1 tornado (tornadoes are confirmed by the local National Weather Service offices)caused lots of damage to Oakman High School, the stadium and elementary school. Fortunately, it all happened during very early morning hours, before school was in session. The report can be found here. The part that struck me was that...

PATH WIDTH AT THAT LOCATION WAS 400 YARDS WIDE.

THAT'S 4 FOOTBALL FIELDS!!! Mike also reports that the storm has passed, and he is hunkering down in preparation of the approaching snow.

4:30PM: The storm looks to be rotating again... and we have had just enough breakage to allow some heating... it's in the doggone 70's here. CRAZY! Anyways, the NWS in Tally just issued a tornado warning for the Marianna, FL weather-hogs, who seem to be in the perfect spot for spin-ups.Could be an interesting night... Anything can happen.

Have a SAFE stormy day,
~Dewdrop