The forecast for the 4th of July and into the weekend looks to be a wet one. In fact, the National Weather Service in Birmingham has issued a Flash Flood Watch in effect for the Eastern half of Alabama this evening through Saturday Morning. Rain is expected in West Alabama, too. 

Chief Meteorologist James Spann writes on the Official ABC 334/40 Weather Blog, "Occasional showers and storms are likely statewide tomorrow. Unfortunately, we can’t give you specific rain start and stop times for specific locations, but just understand the rain could come at any time, and when it does come it could be heavy at times. The high resolution 4km NAM model continues to show the most widespread and heaviest rain over the eastern half of Alabama, but I just don’t think we can rule out a good rain event for West Alabama at this point.

No formal severe weather risk, but a strong storm is possible, and keep in mind all summer storms tend to pack lots of lightning. We will struggle to get out of the 70s tomorrow due the the clouds and occasional rain. And, the rain could very well linger into the late night hours, so it becomes problematic for some of the fireworks shows around Alabama."

Forecasted rain continues through the weekend, especially along the Gulf Coast, which is bad news for those planning on hitting the beach for the holiday.

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James Spann writes of the Gulf Coast forecast: "You might see a little sun at times over the next few days, but the weather will be generally wet along the coast from Panama City west to Gulf Shores through Friday with occasional showers and thunderstorms. The rain could be heavy at times, and a few strong storms are possible. Highs will be in the 80s, and the sea water temperatures are in the low 80s.

For Saturday, Sunday, and the first few days of next week, about 2 to 4 hours of sunshine daily with scattered to numerous showers and thunderstorms along the Central Gulf Coast."

Be sure to bring your umbrella and make plans to bring your 4th of July BBQ indoors. As always, we'll keep you informed of any severe weather and keep you up-to-date with the latest forecasts from James Spann.

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