The Nations Weather

NATIONAL WEATHER SUMMARY:

In the East, scattered showers and thunderstorms occurred across portions of the Southeast, Florida, and the Carolinas. These storms featured occasional lightning and brief downpours. Most of the heavier showers remained offshore. Rainfall totals generally remained below a quarter of an inch. Locally higher totals occurred. Meanwhile, a disorganized line of showers and thunderstorms formed across portions of northeastern Pennsylvania and southeastern New York. These storms produced brief heavy downpours in isolated locations, but no strong storms occurred. To the west, widely scattered showers and thunderstorms broke out across the central and southern Mississippi Valley. Most storms produced less than a quarter of an inch of rain. One slow moving storm brought 1.41 inches of rain to Carbondale, Illinois. Dry and pleasant weather was common elsewhere across the Great Lakes, the rest of the Northeast, and the eastern Ohio Valley.

In the central United States, scattered showers and thunderstorms pushed across the northern and central Plains. A few of these storms managed to become strong to severe. The main impact was large hail. Golf Ball sized hail fell to the west of Alliance, Nebraska. Another storm dropped penny sized hail and produced 0.71 inches of rain in a half an hour near Porcupine, South Dakota. These storms weakened during the evening and into the overnight hours as they pushed into the eastern Dakotas and eastern Nebraska. Meanwhile, isolated showers and thunderstorms occurred along the Texas Gulf Coast. No strong storms occurred. Elsewhere, dry and pleasant conditions occurred across the rest of the southern Plains and the Upper Midwest.

In the West, widely scattered showers and thunderstorms occurred during the afternoon hours across most of the Rocky Mountains. These storms fell apart quickly during the evening, largely coming to an end by midnight. Most of these storms were run of the mill. However, one storm managed to produce penny sized hail near Colfax, South Dakota. Windy conditions occurred across portions of the northern Rockies through the day and evening. Winds gusted to 40 to 50 miles per hour across portions of Montana and Wyoming. Meanwhile, isolated rain showers occurred across portions of the Pacific Northwest. Rainfall amounts were generally light. Elsewhere, high pressure brought dry, quiet, and mild weather to the Great Basin, the Desert Southwest, and California.

WEATHER EXTREMES FOR YESTERDAY:

HIGHEST TEMPERATURE (DEGREES F)............105 Bullhead City, AZ

HIGHEST HEAT INDEX (DEGREES F).............105 Bullhead City, AZ

LOWEST TEMPERATURE (DEGREES F)..............25 Truckee, CA

LOWEST WIND CHILL (DEGREES F)...............18 Ely, NV

HIGHEST WIND GUST (MPH).....................44 Cutbank, MT

HIGHEST PRECIPITATION (INCHES)............1.99 Jacksonville, FL

ON THIS DATE IN HISTORY:

In 1890, a severe hailstorm struck Strawberry, Arizona. Five days after the storm, hail remained 12 to 18 inches deep in drifts.

In 1983, a cold airmass surged down the Plains. Forty-one cities reported record cold temperatures for the morning. Houston, Texas had a low of 50 degrees and Williston, North Dakota saw the mercury plunge to 19 degrees.

In 2005, for the first time on record, two hurricanes reached Category 5 in the Gulf of Mexico in a single season as Hurricane Rita intensified before making landfall.

DTN-Meteorlogix/N Hamblin

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