2017 TN Valley Year in Review

2017 Summary:

2017 was another very busy year across the Tennessee Valley and Cumberland Plateau region of Northern Alabama and Southern Middle Tennessee. The year began with the region still trying to dig it's way out of an severe to exceptional drought that plagued the area for most of 2016. A wet (and mild pattern) developed from the late Winter months that lasted well into the Spring. Several rounds of beneficial rains helped alleviate the soil moisture/stress from the drought, and by late April into early May, the region was completely removed from drought status. While it was not a particularly active severe weather season, there were a few events this Spring that produced some severe to significant damage in a few locations -- either from straight-line winds or tornadoes. As spring turned to summer, diurnal convection season ramped up in June, July, and August. While there were a few straight-line wind/microburst events, a couple of flash flood events were actually more notable. In particular, some higher-end flash flooding occurred across Madison County, AL, on the evenings of August 10-11th, where extremely high rainfall rates in near stationary thunderstorm complexes produced some significant runoff issues in downtown Huntsville. Additionally, a very active Atlantic hurricane season brought several systems into or near the vicinity of the Tennessee Valley from June to October. Heavy rainfall, strong/gusty gradient winds, and even a couple tornadoes accompanied these systems. The summer, particularly mid July to early August, was noted for being hot and humid. Several days of Heat Advisories, with Heat Index values reaching the 105 to 110 degree range occurred. As summer turned to autumn, the warmer weather remained, but a much drier pattern developed across the SE United States in the Southern Appalachians. As a result, abnormally dry to moderate drought conditions have redeveloped over parts of the region to close out 2017. One event of note was a significant bout of winter weather that occurred just south of the region in Central Alabama into North Georgia. Several inches of snow fell along the Mountain and Piedmont region of these states, but drier air kept most of the winter weather and snowfall accumulations just to our south. 

For a more in-depth look at the conditions across the TN Valley, click the icons above. 

2017 Headlines: