NATIONAL STORM SUMMAY

 

JANUARY 2023

 

1-7: Northern and central California’s mid-winter barrage of Pacific storms continued through the first week of January, further easing drought due to soil moisture replenishment and abundant mountain snowpack. However, heavy precipitation also caused short-term concerns, including flash flooding, debris flows, and rising river levels. Significant precipitation occurred in other areas, including parts of the Great Basin and Intermountain West. Rain and snow also provided some additional Southwestern drought relief. One of the Western storms took aim on the central and eastern U.S., with heavy snow falling from Nebraska (and portions of neighboring states) northeastward into the upper Great Lakes region. Additionally, locally severe thunderstorms and isolated tornadoes swept across the South from January 2-4, while a broader area of the South, East, and lower Midwest received rain.

 

It was the wettest New Year’s Day on record in Utah locations such as Alta (2.26 inches, including 20.8 inches of snow) and Salt Lake City (0.89 inches). In Wyoming, snowfall records for January 1 were established in Casper (7.3 inches) and Riverton (6.7 inches). An additional 7.8 inches blanketed Riverton on the 2nd. In Nevada, January 1 records for precipitation (0.86 inch) and snowfall (6.9 inches) were broken in Ely. By January 2-3, heavy snow overspread parts of the north-central U.S., where daily-record totals included 11.0 inches (on the 2nd) in Valentine, NE, and 17.2 inches (on the 3rd) in Mitchell, SD. Two-day snowfall reached 14.5 inches in Valentine and 23.0 inches in Mitchell. Similarly, 14.8 inches of snow fell on January 3-4 in Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN, where there has been a snow depth of 1 inch or greater each day since November 29. Meanwhile, severe thunderstorms—mostly across the South but extending as far north as Illinois—spawned more than 50 tornadoes from January 2-4, according to preliminary reports. As the storms swept across northern Florida on January 4, Jacksonville reported a monthly record-high wind gust of 66 mph (previously, 63 mph on January 25, 2010). Furthermore, 2- to 4-inch daily-record rainfall totals were reported in locations such as Memphis, TN (3.84 inches on January 3); Athens, GA (3.71 inches on January 4); El Dorado, AR (3.40 inches on January 3); and GreenvilleSpartanburg, SC (2.74 inches on January 4). During the second half of the week, locally significant precipitation returned across the West. In southern California, Camarillo netted a daily-record rainfall (1.14 inches) on January 5. Alta, UT, received a daily-record precipitation total (1.90 inches, along with 17.6 inches of snow) on January 6. Elsewhere on the 6th, Great Falls, MT, had a rare, mid-winter rain event, collecting a daily-record sum of 0.47 inch. That marked Great Falls’ wettest January day since 2006, when 0.53 inch fell on the 15th.

          

8-14: For the third week in a row, seemingly incessant storminess in California caused debris flows and extensive flooding, but further padded high-elevation snowpack and boosted reservoir levels. At times, stormy weather extended into other areas, including the Pacific Northwest, Great Basin, and Intermountain West. By mid-January, the water equivalency of the Sierra Nevada snowpack topped 30 inches, slightly higher than the typical accumulation during an entire October-March season. However, record flooding was observed along several California waterways, including portions of the Salinas River. In contrast, mild, dry weather dominated the nation’s mid-section, including large sections of the Plains and upper Midwest.

 

Meanwhile, precipitation across the eastern one-third of the U.S. included a mid-winter severe weather outbreak on January 12. According to preliminary reports, as many five dozen tornadoes struck a seven-state area of the South on January 12. A deadly EF3 tornado—with maximum winds estimated near 150 mph—carved a 77-mile path across Alabama, starting in Autauga County, where seven fatalities were reported.

 

California’s 3-week deluge culminated with record-setting rainfall. In a 72-hour period ending the evening of January 11, rainfall totals of 12 to 18 inches or more were reported in southern California locations such as Ventura (18.78 inches), Nordhoff Ridge (18.31 inches), Matilija Dam (17.17 inches), San Marcos Pass(17.17 inches), and White Ledge Peak (16.85 inches). California’s calendar-day rainfall records for January 9 included 4.22 inches in Santa Barbara, 3.42 inches in Santa Maria, 3.02 inches in Bishop, 2.69 inches in Sandberg, and 2.16 inches in Santa Rosa. For Santa Barbara, it was the wettest January day on record, surpassing 4.16 inches on January 23, 2008. In Bishop, where the normal annual precipitation is 4.84 inches, it was the fifth-wettest day on record at any time of year. Along California’s Salinas River, a northward-flowing waterway, a record crest (3.09 feet above flood stage) was reported on January 9 in Paso Robles. Farther downstream, the Salinas River at Bradley, CA, crested 5.88 feet above flood stage on January 10. It was the third-highest crest in Bradley, below the highwater marks of March 1995 and February 1969. Due to broken or compromised levees in the Salinas Valley, significant agricultural land remained under water after the crest passed. Meanwhile in Merced, CA, Bear Creek achieved a record crest on January 10, rising 3.18 feet above flood stage; the previous high-water mark had occurred on April 4, 2006. Finally, the Carmel River at Robles del Rio, CA, climbed 4.19 feet above flood stage on January 9, just 0.31 foot below the March 1995 high-water mark. At Donner Pass, CA, season-to-date snowfall at the Central Sierra Snow Lab climbed above 340 inches by mid-January, up from 56.5 inches at the end of November. Farther inland, Alta, UT, received 130.7 inches of snow in 19 days, from December 27 – January 14. Late in the week, precipitation overspread the Pacific Northwest before returning across southern California. Record-setting rainfall totals reached 2.59 inches (on January 12) in Quillayute, WA, and 2.69 inches (on January 13) in Crescent City, CA. Meanwhile, heavy showers accompanied locally severe Southern thunderstorms, mainly on January 12-13. Daily-record wind gusts were clocked to 46 mph (on the 12th) in Alma, GA, and 47 mph (on the 13th) in Jacksonville, FL. Heavy precipitation fell in northern New England on January 13, when Caribou, ME, set daily records for precipitation (1.78 inches) and snowfall (10.5 inches). In southern California, record-breaking rainfall totals for January 14 included 1.82 inches in downtown Los Angeles, 1.72 inches in Long Beach, and 1.13 inches in Paso Robles.

 

22-28: Late in the week, precipitation returned across the northern tier of the West, with a band of snow extending eastward from the Cascades and northern Rockies. Meanwhile, widespread storminess affected much of the South, East, and lower Midwest. Notably, the first significant precipitation of the year— mostly snow—fell on the southern Plains, mainly on January 24, benefiting droughtstressed rangeland.

 

Snow later spread into the lower Great Lakes region. Weekly precipitation topped 2 inches along the northern Atlantic Coast, with significant snow blanketing parts of northern New England on January 22-23 and 26. 

 

Heavy showers soaked the southern Atlantic States. Record-setting rainfall totals for January 22 included 2.90 inches in Tallahassee, FL, and 2.41 inches in Columbia, SC. Meanwhile in New England, January 22-23 snowfall totaled 14.6 inches in Concord, NH, and 12.8 inches in Bangor, ME. Additional heavy precipitation fell in the Northeast on January 26, when Bangor netted 1.25 inches—a mix of rain, freezing rain, and 2.3 inches of snow. Caribou, ME, received 8.6 inches of snow on the 26th. Farther south, an impressive precipitation event unfolded across the South, starting on January 24, when daily-record snowfall totals reached 9.0 inches in Harrison, AR, and 7.2 inches in Lubbock, TX. Elsewhere in Texas, Dallas-Fort Worth (1.02 inches on the 24th) received its first measurable precipitation since December 19. For Dallas-Fort Worth, the 35-day dry spell marked the third time in less than a year—along with June 18 – July 20, 2022, and September 5 – October 10, 2022—that a streak without measurable precipitation has surpassed the 1-month mark. Recordsetting rainfall amounts for January 24 reached 4.05 inches in Houston, TX, and 2.60 inches in Shreveport, LA. As precipitation shifted eastward on the 25th, Apalachicola, FL, measured a dailyrecord rainfall of 1.87 inches, while daily snowfall records totaled 6.2 inches in Fort Wayne, IN, and 5.0 inches in Dayton, OH. From southeastern Texas to northern Florida, a severe-weather outbreak on January 24-25 led to as many as two dozen tornadoes, based on preliminary reports. With more than 150 U.S. tornadoes catalogued during the first month of 2023, this could become the second-highest January total on record, behind only 214 tornadoes in 1999. Late in the week, precipitation overspread the Northwest. In Montana, daily-record precipitation totals for January 27 reached 0.47 inch in Lewistown and 0.45 inch in Missoula. In Wyoming, January 27-29 snowfall totaled 10.7 inches in Casper and 6.6 inches in Cheyenne. Significant, mid-winter precipitation fell in parts of Alaska, especially across the southern half of the mainland. Weekly snowfall totaled 7.3 inches in Fairbanks, aided by a January 23-24 sum of 5.7 inches. Meanwhile, Yakutat received more than an inch of rain each day from January 19-23, totaling 6.83 inches.

 

29-Feb. 4: A multi-day storm delivered substantial ice accretion (due to freezing rain) from central Texas to the northern Mississippi Delta, hampering travel and leading to power outages for hundreds of thousands of customers. The storm was also responsible for sleet accumulations, especially from northeastern Texas into Arkansas, as well as heavy rain (locally 2 to 4 inches or more) across the Deep South.

 

In late January, heavy rain drenched the central Gulf Coast region. On January 29 in Louisiana, both Baton Rouge and New Iberia received daily-record totals of 4.04 inches. Farther north, rain briefly changed to snow in the middle Atlantic States, leading to the first official accumulation of the season on February 1 in Washington, DC (0.4 inch); Philadelphia, PA (0.3 inch); and New York’s Central Park (0.4 inch). For Central Park, it marked a record-late date for the season’s first accumulation, previously set with 1.8 inches on January 29, 1973. Meanwhile in the South, a 4-day winter weather event began on January 30. Dallas-Fort Worth, TX, received precipitation (sleet, freezing rain, and rain) totaling 1.05 inches, including 1.3 inches of sleet on January 31. Similarly, Waco, TX, reported 1.24 inches from January 30 – February 2. Both locations noted temperatures ranging from 25 to 35°F during the 4-day period. Austin, TX, was hit hard by ice, with a daily-record total of 1.12 inches on February 1 falling mostly as freezing rain. Elsewhere, gusty winds developed across southern California, with widespread gusts ranging from 50 to 80 mph reported at higher elevations on the morning of January 31. Some gusts reached coastal communities, where Camarillo, CA, clocked a gust to 57 mph on that date.

Jim G. Munley, jr.
http://www.jimmunleywx.com