Significant Event Summary

The weather headlines of 2006 in the Tennessee Valley were:

• Minor winter weather events in February
• Severe Weather Outbreak April 7th
• Severe drought from summer through early fall
• Hot summer and above average temperatures for the entire year
• No tropical systems affecting the area

Much like 2005, 2006 got off to a warm start across the Tennessee Valley. Huntsville and Muscle Shoals experienced record highs of 74 and 76 respectively on the second day of the year. Conditions were also relatively dry early on, with near drought conditions lasting into the first half of the month. Rainfall over the second half of the month alleviated some of these deficits. Muscle Shoals set new rainfall records on both the 17th and 22nd. However, above average temperatures persisted through the end of the month, with Huntsville tying for the 6th warmest January on record.

Snow covers a deck and backyard near Lake Guntersville in northeast Alabama on February 12th.

A warmer than normal January gave way to a colder than usual February in the Tennessee Valley. There were even a few minor bouts of wintry weather across the region, especially in the usual winter-prone spots. Rain changed to snow in parts of northeast Alabama and southeastern Middle Tennessee on the 8th, producing as much as two inches of snow in Sewanee, TN (Franklin County), and minor accumulations of snow at Skyline in Jackson County. Just a couple days later, more wintry weather visited the valley as an upper level low produced occasional snow showers through the night of the 12th. The end result was a trace to a coating of snow across much of the area, up to 1.5 inches at Danville (Morgan County) and 2 inches east of Moulton (Lawrence County). Sewanee reported 7 inches of snow for the entire week. Yet another winter tease impacted the Tennessee Valley less than a week later thanks to another disturbance and a shallow cold air mass. Freezing rain and sleet deposited up to one-half inch of ice on elevated surfaces, but limited moisture and warm ground precluded more significant problems. Temperature readings on the 19th fell to the teens across much of the area, marking the coldest morning of winter 2005-2006 in most locations. Huntsville and Muscle Shoals both fell to 16 degrees, but Lynchburg (Moore County) reported one of the coldest readings at 12 degrees.

Tree damage from an F0 tornado that affected southern Cullman County on March 13th.

The below normal temperatures of February did not carry over into March, as the Tennessee Valley experienced yet another month of unseasonably warm temperatures. A record high was tied in Muscle Shoals on the 11th. The transition of seasons brought on a few rounds of stormy weather as well. On the 9th, a squall line pushed across North Alabama and South Tennessee, generating scattered reports of wind damage. Just a few days later on the 13th, scattered severe storms affected the southeastern United States. One particular storm that tracked across southern Cullman County produced an F0 tornado that skipped between I-65 and Garden City, causing only tree damage. The remainder of the month was fairly quiet - the lone exception being a particularly photogenic supercell that moved across the Shoals on the last day of the month. That storm produced golfball size hail and downed trees in Lauderdale County. Precipitation for the month was well below normal across most of the area.

A funnel cloud is backlit by a cloud-to-ground lightning bolt northwest of Huntsville on the night of April 7th.

Perhaps the most memorable event of the year was the severe weather outbreak on the evening of April 7th. A series of supercells tracked across north Alabama and southern middle Tennessee producing several tornadoes, prolific hailfall, and widespread wind damage. While none of the tornadoes were as significant as those which affected our neighbors to the north, over 25 reports of hail golfball size or greater were received, including reports of softball size hail in Marshall and Morgan Counties. As much as six inches of large hail accumulated on the ground in some areas. Thankfully, the severe weather did not cause any deaths or injuries across the Tennessee Valley.

The above average temperatures of March lingered into April, bringing record-setting highs to the Tennessee Valley from the 15th through the 20th. This unprecedented warmth caused April 2006 to tie for the warmest April on record in Huntsville, and become second warmest April on record in Muscle Shoals. Aside from the severe weather outbreak of the 7th, there were a few other severe weather events during April. Of note, a lingering frontal boundary caused off and on scattered severe thunderstorms for four straight evenings between the 18th and 21st. Several hail reports were received with these storms, and a few areas saw flash flooding.

Damage from an F0 tornado that affected southern Limestone County on May 9th.

Unlike 2005, when the summer was marked by extensive tropical activity, the summer of 2006 was marked by heat and drought. The only relief came from typical summertime thunderstorms, which occasionally produced wind damage in the form of microbursts. Damage was reported all across the Tennessee Valley, the most severe of which was in Margerum and Cherokee in Colbert County, and Russellville in Franklin County, Alabama. Downtown Cullman and a commercial district in Fort Payne (DeKalb County) were also hit hard. Unfortunately, any relief from the drought was very isolated and short-lived, and official drought status worsened from moderate to severe by the beginning of August. Monthly rainfall deficits averaged around two inches in three consecutive months at Huntsville, and conditions were worse across portions of northeast Alabama. The dry conditions had a big impact on area crops and vegetation, forcing state and local officials to apply for federal disaster relief.

Making things worse were the abnormally warm conditions that went hand in hand with the drought. The first half of 2006 was one of the warmest starts to a year on record for Huntsville and Muscle Shoals, and the heat only worsened during the summer months. Huntsville and Muscle Shoals exceeded 90 degrees 76 and 81 times respectively, the most in eight years, and reached 100 degrees for the first time in several years. While Huntsville broke the century mark twice, Muscle Shoals topped 100 degrees nine times, the most since 1999.

Property damage from downed trees caused by an F1 tornado that affected Albertville on September 22nd.

Severe drought carried over into the first half of September, but the heat wave finally subsided. As organized storm systems began to affect the area over the latter part of the month, the drought situation began to very slowly improve as well. One particularly notable storm system brought an unusual bout of severe weather to the area on the 22nd. A warm front lifting through the area spawned two tornadoes, including an F-1 tornado that caused tree and minor structural damage to a portion of the Albertville area (Marshall County).

The fall season brought a return to quiet weather for the Tennessee Valley. Unlike some previous years, the fall severe weather season was nearly nonexistent. Beneficial rain events over the second half of October brough the area out of the drought, though seasonal and annual rainfall totals remained below normal. The warm conditions that dominated for much of the year also subsided some in October and November, as the average temperatures at both Huntsville and Muscle Shoals fell below normal. The most remarkable weather events consisted of gusty winds, but not winds associated with thunderstorms. Strong wind gusts downed trees and caused minor roof damage on the 16th and 17th of October, and again at the end of November when 40 to 50 mph gusts were recorded across much of the area.

December got off to a cold start across north Alabama and southern Tennessee, setting record lows of 14 and 15 and Huntsville and Muscle Shoals, and a frigid 10 degrees at Fayetteville and Valley Head. However, temperatures rebounded quickly, and high temperatures rose above 60 degrees for at least 10 straight days. This warm spell balanced out the initial cold start, causing temperatures for December to average warmer than normal. Much of the month was dry, with only around a third of an inch of rain recorded in the first 3 weeks of December. More appreciable rain arrived by the end of the month, with a large portion of the area seeing two or more inches of rain on the last two days of the year.