The Birmingham, Alabama Snow “Disaster” of 28 January 2014

Timothy A. Coleman

Abstract

A rare combination of anomalously cold air and rapidly falling snow produced a massive travel disruption in parts of the southeastern U.S. on 28 January 2014. Storm-total snowfalls were generally only 5 cm in the Birmingham, AL area, but most people were at work or school when the snow began. Due to icy roadways, thousands of people were forced to sleep in offices and schools, while many vehicles were abandoned on freeways and surface streets.

This event was a unique forecasting challenge in many aspects, especially for the southeastern U.S. In the 24 h leading up to the event, numerical model quantitative precipitation forecasting (QPF) was focused south of the main population centers where the main disruptions eventually occurred. A layer of very dry air was present up to 800 hPa, but saturation deficits were low due to the cold air. Radar data a few hours before the event provided some of the only tangible evidence that significant snow may occur. However, forecasters did not anticipate the havoc that would ensue from the relatively light snow accumulations.

In this paper, we examine the event, including the synoptic setup, vertical profiles of temperature and moisture, soil temperatures, numerical models, and radar data. On the early morning of 28 January, when school superintendents and business owners had to make decisions on whether to open, no warnings nor advisories were in effect for the majority of the Birmingham area, and the media indicated there would be no travel problems in Birmingham.

Full Text: PDF

Citation:
Coleman, T. A., K. R. Knupp, J. P. Dice, K. Laws, and C. Darden, 2019: The Birmingham, Alabama snow “disaster” of 28 January 2014. Electronic J. Severe Storms Meteor., 14 (4), 1-24.

Keywords:
snowfall, preparedness, winter weather, transportation meteorology, societal impacts, mesoscale processes