The Nation's Weather

National Weather Summary for Wednesday, July 30, 2008

NATIONAL WEATHER SUMMARY:

Portions of the Tennessee Valley and Deep South saw scattered showers and thunderstorms through the afternoon hours. Some severe weather was reported in the afternoon and early evening hours with multiple reports of trees down and small hail across the region. Rainfall was generally light across the region. The other main story came late in the day as a powerful complex of storms moved out of the Mississippi Valley and into the western reaches of the Ohio Valley. However, by the late evening hours, the storm complex lost its ability to produce strong wind gusts and transitioned more to a rain event across portions of Indiana.

The real action took place in the central portion of the country where a few complexes of storms roared in the afternoon and evening hours. Tornadoes were reported across central and northern Wisconsin near the dinner rush hour, with only damage to trees and a few power poles. Wind in the region was also able to knock down a few trees and hail dented some car roofs. A strong complex of storms formed in the late afternoon across the northern reaches of Missouri, which moved quickly to the east and produced numerous reports of high winds. A tree blown down into power lines caused a power outage in Beason, Illinois with numerous other reports of trees and power poles down. Rains were also locally heavy as a result of the wide swath of rain. Dry conditions held fast across the Northern Plains and Upper Mississippi Valley behind a weak cold front.

Scattered showers and thunderstorms formed in the afternoon hours across the Great Basin and Rockies on Tuesday. Rainfall was generally reported as light throughout the region, with one wind gust near Fort Benton, Montana reported near 65 mph. Other areas of high winds were reported across portions of western Utah and eastern Nevada, but real reports of wind were few and far between. A dreary day fell across portions of the Pacific Northwest under low clouds and drizzle all day. Dry and cool conditions held across California and the western Desert Southwest.

WEATHER EXTREMES FOR YESTERDAY:

HIGHEST TEMPERATURE (DEGREES F)............118 Death Valley, CA

HIGHEST HEAT INDEX (DEGREES F).............110 Dyersburg, TN

LOWEST TEMPERATURE (DEGREES F)..............29 Polebridge, MT

LOWEST WIND CHILL (DEGREES F)...............12 Benton, CA

HIGHEST WIND GUST (MPH).....................70 Elkhart, IL

HIGHEST PRECIPITATION (INCHES)............3.31 Amarillo, TX

ON THIS DATE IN HISTORY:

In 1965, the temperature at Portland, Oregon reached 107 degrees, equaling the all time record high.

In 1979, a forty-minute hailstorm bombed Fort Collins, Colorado. A 3 month old baby later died from injuries from the hail, the most tragic loss of the day.

In 1988, a dozen cities in the north central and northeastern U.S. reported record high temperatures. Baltimore, Maryland, hit 103 degrees in a string of 8 straight days above 100 degrees.

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