The Nations Weather

In the East, a low pressure system began to slowly move into the eastern half of the country, producing mostly cloudy skies with scattered showers and thunderstorms across portions of the Great Lakes region, the Ohio and Tennessee Valley, and the Southeast. There was one report of severe weather at Pontotoc, Mississippi where a thunderstorm wind gust of 60 mph downed numerous trees. However, the main concern of the day was the periods of heavy rain. Tupelo, Mississippi received 1.89 inches of rain, and 1.78 inches fell at Memphis, Tennessee. Scattered showers and thunderstorms also affected parts of Florida, mainly during the afternoon and evening hours. There were no reports of severe weather with rainfall amounts ranging from 0.30-0.70 inches with locally heavier amounts of over an inch. As for the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic region, partly cloudy skies and dry conditions prevailed.

Across the central part of the country, scattered to numerous showers and thunderstorms affected the eastern Plains and Mississippi Valley through much of the day. No severe weather was reported with this activity, but very heavy rains affected many locations. The following table reflects the highest rainfall amounts:

Location Rainfall amounts

Pine Bluff, AR 4.56 inches

Little Rock, AR 3.43 inches

Sioux Falls, SD 1.77 inches

Rochester, MN 1.62 inches

Omaha, NE 1.43 inches

Des Moines, IA 1.21 inches

Rochester, MN set a new daily rainfall record of 1.62 inches of rain, which broke the old record of 1.42 inches set back in 1967. There were a number flooding and flash flooding watches and warning that were issued as a result of the heavy rainfall. Otherwise, a good chunk of the southern Plains and western portions of the northern and central Plains experienced mostly sunny skies and near normal temperatures.

In the West, a Pacific storm system brought showers, high elevation snows, and gusty winds to the Pacific Northwest, the northern Rocky Mountains, and the northern high Plains. Heavier rain of 1.02 inches fell at Maple Falls, Washington and winds gusted to 25-35 mph across much of Montana. Snow showers fell at elevations about 5000 feet with 2-4 inches of new snow reported. Elsewhere, very warm and dry conditions were experienced across California and the Desert Southwest where high temperatures averaged 10-15 degrees above normal for this time of year. In fact, El Cajon, California set a new high temperature record for the day of 101 degrees, breaking the old record of 99 degrees set back in 1991. Long Beach, California also set a new high temperature record for the day of 99 degrees, which broke the old record of 98 degrees set back in 1971.

WEATHER EXTREMES FOR FOR YESTERDAY:

HIGHEST TEMPERATURE (DEGREES F)............105 Anaheim, CA

HIGHEST HEAT INDEX (DEGREES F).............101 McAllen, TX

LOWEST TEMPERATURE (DEGREES F)..............14 Shirley Basin, WY

LOWEST WIND CHILL (DEGREES F)................8 Leadville, CO

HIGHEST WIND GUST (MPH).....................72 Cut Bank, MT

HIGHEST PRECIPITATION (INCHES)............4.56 Pine Bluff, AR

ON THIS DATE IN HISTORY:

In 1901, a deluge of 12 inches of rain hit Galveston, Texas in just six hours. These heavy rains came precisely 13 months after the day of the famous Galveston hurricane disaster.

In 1982, an early season snow storm moves through the Black Hills of Wyoming and South Dakota. The storm produced 54 inches of new snow and winds of 70 mph.

In 1988, snow showers blanketed Mount Snow, Vermont with two inches of new snow, while very warm weather was experienced across the Pacific Northwest with a high temperature of 80 degrees at Stampede Pass, Washington.

DTN-Meteorlogix

Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.