Drought Goes Away, But Dry Spell Settles In

Thursday, October 16th 2014, 10:58 am

By: News On 6

Drought Goes Away, But Dry Spell Settles In

The two-part drenching over the past week has led to some good news in this week's Drought Monitor. Portions of eastern Oklahoma saw over 7” of rain with a couple inches falling around the Tulsa metro area. The result is drought reduction and even elimination for Green Country. While Tulsa still has over a 9” rainfall deficit for the year, the short-term effects of the rainy spell should tide us over for a little while as quieter weather settles in.

                The state of the drought is improving for eastern Oklahoma while excessive dryness still has a firm grip on western Oklahoma. Rainfall totals were much lighter, temperatures have been hotter, and reservoirs are much lower in that direction. Our first map has the details of the drought situation. Unfortunately, improvement from here is not likely in the coming weeks. Return moisture from the Gulf of Mexico just isn't showing up in the week ahead. Despite a few cold fronts sliding through the region in this timeframe, little will come of it in the way of rainfall.

                The good news with this pattern is that more pristine fall weather lies ahead. After a brief warm-up today, a dry cold front will push temperatures to near 70 for a high on Saturday. The forecast couldn't be better for Oktoberfest over the weekend. Monday *may* offer a few showers to the area, but even that cold front is lacking moisture so the chances of rain are slim. Mild days and cool nights will likely continue well into next week. At this time, no major cold spells are showing up. That means the growing season will continue and we can keep those tomato plants alive for a while longer. They just made need water. It appears this dry spell may last well into the end of the month. The latest 8-14 Day Outlook shows below-normal rainfall expected over that time.

                While the weather remains awfully quiet here, the Tropics have sprung to life again. The strongest hurricane in the Atlantic Basin is moving northward, directly toward Bermuda. It may strike the small, but vulnerable island as a Category 3 hurricane with winds over 100mph on Friday. Looking the other direction, Tropical Storm Ana is forecast to intensify into a hurricane and make a close approach, if not landfall, over Hawaii later this weekend. You might remember Hurricane Iselle making landfall on the Big Island in August. A second direct hit would be nearly unprecedented for the state.

                There's always something going on, even if the weather is quiet for now in our backyard. Enjoy the great fall weather and be sure to follow me on Twitter: @GroganontheGO and like my page on Facebook!