NATIONAL STORM SUMMARY

 

JUNE 2015

 

1-6: Heavy rain (locally 4 inches or more) developed across southeastern Nebraska, northwestern Missouri, and northeastern Kansas. In addition, the heavy rain also triggered flooding along the lower Missouri River and its tributaries. Significant rain also fell in the Atlantic Coast States, limiting fieldwork but easing short-term dryness. Weekly totals exceeded 2 inches in many locations from the Carolinas to southern New England. The wettest May (and month) on record in Texas came to a close with lingering downpours in southern areas. Brownsville, TX, collected a daily record rainfall (3.50 inches) for May 31. Heavy showers also persisted into May 31 in the mid-South, where El Dorado, AR, received a daily record sum of 3.20 inches. Elsewhere in Arkansas, the community of Big Fork (in Polk County) reported May rainfall totaling 24.46 inches, breaking the state record of 23.50 inches set at Center Point (in Howard County) in May 1905. However, in late May and early June, the focus for heavy rainfall shifted into the eastern U.S. In New York, daily record amounts for May 31 reached 2.44 inches in Buffalo and 1.64 inches in Rochester. The new month opened with record setting totals for June 1 in locations such as Wilmington, DE

(3.80 inches); Baltimore, MD (2.50 inches); and Atlantic City, NJ (2.22 inches). Record high rainfall amounts for June 2 reached 3.11 inches in Roanoke, VA, and 2.42 inches in

Columbia, SC. With a 1.81-inch total on June 3, Buffalo reported its second rainfall record in 4 days. Meanwhile, heavy rain erupted across the east-central Plains and southwestern Corn Belt. June 3 featured a daily record rainfall in Kansas City, MO, where 2.25 inches fell. The 4^th was the wettest June day on record in Hastings, NE, where rainfall totaled 4.74 inches. The only higher daily totals on record in Hastings were 6.09 inches on August 31, 1969, and

5.11 inches on August 3, 1990. Hastings’ previous June daily record had been 4.20 inches on June 24, 1968. The east-central Plains’ heavy rain lingered into June 5, when Salina, KS, reported a daily-record sum of 3.30 inches. At week’s end, atypically heavy June showers developed in parts of the Southwest. In Arizona, record-setting amounts for June 6 included 1.00 inch in Flagstaff and 0.19 inch in Winslow.

 

7-13: The interaction between several disturbances and moisture associated with the Remnants of eastern Pacific Hurricane Blanca contributed to a wet pattern in many areas

of the country. In particular, out-of-season showers dotted the Great Basin and the Southwest. Weekly totals in excess of 2 inches were noted in several locations. Showers also dotted the northern Plains, though amounts were mostly an inch or less. Meanwhile, showers intensified across parts of the Midwest, although rainfall largely bypassed the upper

Midwest and the Ohio Valley. Weekly totals of 2 to 4 inches were common in a broad area centered on Illinois, resulting in pockets of lowland flooding. Some of the heavy rain extended into the Northeast. Elsewhere, precipitation was generally light and scattered across the South. However, a few heavier showers were noted in the southern Appalachians and the central and eastern Gulf Coast States.

 

14-20: Tropical Storm Bill made landfall on the Texas coast on June 16 before slowly arcing across the southeastern Plains, mid-South, and Ohio Valley. Bill finally crossed the Mid-Atlantic region on the night of June 20-21 before losing tropical characteristics. Although the storm produced gusty, tropical storm-force winds in the western Gulf Coast region, Bill’s primary impact was heavy rain. Rainfall totals of 4 inches or more were common in the western Gulf Coast region and from northeastern Texas into the lower Ohio Valley.  Amounts in excess of 8 inches triggered record flooding in south-central Oklahoma and adjacent areas in Texas.

Elsewhere, widespread showers dotted the northern Plains and upper Midwest, maintaining generally favorable conditions for summer crop development and winter wheat maturation. Starting on June 19, however, a multi-day severe weather outbreak led to local wind and hail damage, primarily in eastern Montana, Nebraska, and the Dakotas. Even before Bill’s arrival, widespread showers and thunderstorms stretched from the central and southern Plains into the Northeast. Record setting rainfall totals for June 14 included 3.04 inches in

Lansing, MI; 2.74 inches in Binghamton, NY; and 2.66 inches in Borger, TX. Heavy showers also soaked the western Gulf Coast region, where Victoria, TX, netted a daily record total (4.33 inches) for June 14. The following day, June 15, featured daily record totals in excess of 2 inches in locations such as Colorado Springs, CO (3.16 inches); Fort Wayne, IN (2.73 inches); and Chicago, IL (2.56 inches). In Texas, Victoria’s weekly (June 14-20) rainfall climbed to 9.19 inches, aided by a 4.35-inch total on June 16-17. On the day of Bill’s landfall, wind gusts in Texas were clocked to 58 mph in Palacios and 46 mph in Galveston. For several days following landfall, Bill remained the focus for heavy rain. In Texas, record breaking amounts for June 17 reached 2.74 inches in San Antonio; 2.59 inches in Lufkin; and 2.21 inches in Dallas-Ft. Worth. Lufkin reported 3.61 inches of rain on June 18, for a 2-day total of 6.20 inches. In south-central Oklahoma, where rainfall locally exceeded 8 inches, the Washita River near Dickson crested 21.70 feet above flood stage on June 19. The previous record in that location, 18.24 feet above flood stage, had been established on May 30, 1987. Elsewhere, daily record totals associated with Bill’s remnant circulation included 4.11 inches (on June 18) in Shreveport, LA; 3.65 inches (on June 19) in Evansville, IN; and 2.37 inches (on June 20) in Washington, DC. Meanwhile, June 19 was the first day of a 3-day severe weather outbreak across the northern Plains. Although rainfall totals were not particularly high, Miles City, MT, received a daily record total (0.69 inch) for June 19.

 

21-27: Locally heavy showers continued to plague parts of the southern and eastern Midwest. Some of the heaviest rain, locally 4 inches or more, fell across southern Iowa and northern Missouri. In the lower Midwest.  Strong thunderstorms produced isolated tornadoes and caused local wind and hail damage in various regions, including the northern Plains (on June 21), Midwest (June 22), and Northeast (June 23), as well as the Red River

Valley of the North and environs (June 27). Meanwhile, scattered Southeastern thundershowers provided local relief from hot weather and diminishing topsoil moisture reserves. Early week rainfall was heaviest along the northern Atlantic Coast, where Bangor, ME, netted a daily-record total (1.46 inches) for June 21. However, the focus for heavy rain soon turned to the Midwest, where record setting totals for June 22 included 2.75 inches in Lansing, MI, and 1.65 inches in Pierre, SD. On June 23, Northeastern thunderstorms produced the fourth highest wind gust (72 mph) on record in Philadelphia, PA, and only the fourth known occurrence of 4-inch diameter hail in Maryland (in Baltimore County). Farther south, hit or miss showers resulted in daily record totals in locations such as Vicksburg, MS (2.78 inches on June 24); Orlando, FL (2.54 inches on June 25); and Asheville, NC (1.82 inches on June 22). During the mid to late week period, torrential rain returned to the southern and eastern Midwest before moving into the East. Through the 28th, record high June rainfall totals included 13.09 inches in Baltimore, MD; 11.72 inches in Ft. Wayne, IN; and 8.92 inches in Montpelier, VT. FT. Wayne’s total also exceeded its monthly record, previously set with 11.00 inches in July 1986. Elsewhere in the Midwest, weekly (June 21-27) rainfall included 4.61 inches in Cleveland, OH, and 4.31 inches in Des Moines, IA. At week’s end, heavy showers and locally severe thunderstorms peppered the eastern U.S. Daily record amounts reached 3.81 inches (on June 26) in Cape Hatteras, NC, and 3.11 inches (on June 27) in Baltimore, MD. Elsewhere, trace amounts of precipitation were noted on June 27 in California locations such as Bakersfield and Los Angeles.

 

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