NATIONAL STORM SUMMARY

JUNE 2022

 

1-5: A side from southern Texas and from central and southern California to the southern Rockies, most areas of the country received precipitation in late May and early June. Some of the heaviest rain (locally 2 to 4 inches or more) fell on the Plains.

Late in the week, the low-pressure system that would become Tropical Storm Alex delivered heavy showers (locally 5 to 10 inches or more) across southern Florida. Alex, which became a named storm on June 5 after traversing Florida, was itself a byproduct of an early-season Pacific tropical cyclone (Agatha). On the 30th, Agatha had become only the third hurricane on record to strike the Mexico’s Pacific Coast during May.

In late May, unusually heavy rain (and high-elevation snow) showers dotted the northwestern and north-central U.S. Daily-record precipitation totals for May 29 included 0.93 inch at Lake Yellowstone, WY; 0.81 inch in Butte, MT; 0.49 inch in Walla Walla, WA; and 0.48 inch in Hermiston, OR. By Memorial Day (May 30), daily-record totals ranged from 2 to 4 inches in locations such as Aberdeen, SD (3.45 inches); Hibbing, MN (3.29 inches); and 2.39 inches in Sheridan, WY. For Aberdeen, it was the wettest day since May 5, 2007, when rainfall totaled 7.62 inches. For Hibbing, it was the wettest day during May on record, surpassing 2.57 inches on May 31, 2014. For Sheridan, it was the seventh-wettest day on record— and the wettest day since May 7, 2005, when 2.45 inches fell. Gusty winds accompanied and trailed the Northern rain, with May 30 peak gusts in North Dakota clocked to 55 mph in Fargo and 54 mph in Langdon. At the same time, Southeastern thunderstorms produced wind gusts to 59 mph (on May 29) in Gainesville, FL, and 55 mph (on May 30) in Alma, GA. Alma’s gust achieved a monthly record for that location, previously set with a gust to 54 mph on May 29, 2009. Later, scattered thunderstorms across the nation’s mid-section resulted in daily-record rainfall totals in Kansas City, MO (2.96 inches on May 31), and Dallas-Fort Worth, TX (2.15 inches on June 1). In Arkansas, record-setting totals for June 2 reached 2.84 inches in Monticello and 1.64 inches in Stuttgart. Across the Florida Keys, Marathon netted 5.47 inches of rain on the 3rd, setting a station record for any day in June (previously, 4.30 inches on June 22, 1990). The following day in Florida, record-setting amounts for June 4 included 6.55 inches in Fort Lauderdale, 5.26 inches in Miami, 4.97 inches in Vero Beach, and 4.52 inches in West Palm Beach. For Fort Lauderdale, it was the wettest June day since June 7, 2013, when 8.15 inches fell. For Miami, it was the wettest June day since June 9, 1997, when rainfall totaled 5.89 inches. For Vero Beach, it was the wettest June day on record, surpassing 4.60 inches on June 8, 1973. Elsewhere, significant precipitation returned at week’s end in the Northwest; daily-record rainfall in Washington for June 4 totaled 1.00 inch in Hoquiam and 0.76 inch in Omak.

5-11: Most of the remainder of the country experienced scattered to widespread showers and thunderstorms. Some of the heaviest rain, locally 2 to 4 inches or more, fell in southern Florida and the Pacific Northwest, as well as portions of the southeastern Plains and mid-South. Heavy showers also dotted the Midwest, although previously drenched areas in the Red River Valley and environs finally experienced a mostly dry week. Another area that missed most of the early-June rainfall stretched from parts of Georgia into southern Virginia.

By mid-June, the Calf Canyon/Hermits Peak Fire in northeastern New Mexico had scorched more than 325,000 acres of vegetation (with 70 percent containment) and had destroyed nearly 900 structures, while the Black Fire in southwestern New Mexico had charred more than 312,500 acres but was less than 50 percent contained.

As the week began, showers continued in the Northwest, where Bellingham, WA, netted a record-setting total (0.58 inch) for June 5. Lake Yellowstone, WY, received precipitation totaling 1.31 inches from June 4-7, aided by a daily-record sum (0.72 inch) on the 6th. About a week later, another Northwestern precipitation event led to record flooding in Yellowstone National Park and neighboring areas, with record crests established on June 13 along the Yellowstone River at Corwin Springs and Livingston, MT. The high-water mark at Corwin Springs, originally set on June 14, 1918, was broken by 2.38 feet. Farther east, scattered daily-record rainfall totals included 3.39 inches (on June 6) in Bowling Green, KY; 4.58 inches (on June 7) in Fort Smith, AR; and 6.97 inches (on June 8) in Birmingham, AL. Fort Smith received 8.25 inches of rain from June 6-8, followed an additional 2.70 inches on June 10. Birmingham set a record for its wettest June day on record, easily surpassing 4.36 inches on June 19, 2021. Prior to last year, Birmingham’s wettest June day had occurred on June 23, 1900, when 4.11 inches fell. During the second half of the week, unusually heavy precipitation returned across the Northwest. In Washington, the 9th was the fourth-wettest June day on record in Hoquiam (1.61 inches) and Olympia (1.16 inches). The following day, as heavy rain shifted into Oregon, record-setting amounts for June 10 included 1.42 inches in Portland and 1.39 inches in McMinnville.

12-18: Around the periphery a ridge, caused scattered showers and locally severe thunderstorms dotted the northern and eastern U.S. In the northern Rockies, heavy rain and melting mountain snowpack resulted in extensive flooding in Yellowstone National Park, with record-setting floodwaters coursing downstream along the Yellowstone River to Billings, MT. 

Significant, early-week showers occurred in the Northwest, especially in and near Yellowstone National Park. West Yellowstone, MT, received 2.18 inches of rain in a 24-hour period on June 12-13. Elsewhere in Montana, the Yellowstone River achieved a record crest on June 13 at Corwin Springs, surpassing the June 1918 high-water mark by 2.38 feet. Farther downstream, Yellowstone River crest records from June 1997 were broken by 0.91 foot in Livingston (on June 13) and 1.50 feet in Billings(on June 15). Daily-record rainfall totals for June 12 included 0.93 inch in Stanley, ID; 0.79 inch in Pullman, WA; 0.75 inch in Roseburg, OR; and 0.47 inch in Red Bluff, CA. Burns, OR, collected daily-record totals (0.37 and 0.26 inch, respectively) on June 12 and 18. Meanwhile, hit-or-miss Midwestern thunderstorms sometimes included high winds and large hail. In South Dakota, daily-record totals for June 13 reached 1.82 inches in Mobridge and 1.53 inches in Pierre. Gaylord, MI, hit by a tornado on May 20, clocked a thunderstormrelated wind gust to 60 mph on June 16. Across the South and East, scattered daily-record amounts totaled 2.58 inches (on June 14) in Salisbury, MD; 1.78 inches (on June 16) in Syracuse, NY; and 1.46 inches (on June 17) in Anniston, AL.

19-25: Locally heavy showers dotted the Plains, Southwest, and upper Midwest. Southwestern showers, heaviest in the southern Rockies, were strongly related to a robust and early-onset monsoon circulation. Farther north, cold fronts generated showers and thunderstorms in the central and north-central U.S., with some of the heaviest rain falling in northern and central Minnesota. Elsewhere, heavy showers were also scattered across the Northeast, excluding New England.

On June 19, a rare EF-2 tornado struck Duchesne County, UT, cutting a 2.1-mile path across elevations ranging from 8,500 to 9,200 feet. By June 20, heavy showers across the nation’s northern tier resulted in daily-record totals in Cut Bank, MT (2.57 inches), and International Falls, MN (1.86 inches). Southwestern showers intensified by midweek, resulting in record-setting totals for June 22 in Albuquerque, NM (0.56 inch); Lancaster, CA (0.51 inch); and Yuma, AZ (0.01 inch). Elsewhere on the 22nd, heavy Eastern showers led to dailyrecord totals in Elkins, WV (2.75 inches), and Mount Pocono, PA (1.82 inches). During the second half of the week, showers continued in the Southwest. Daily-record amounts for June 23 included 0.17 inch in Winslow, AZ, and 0.07 inch in Lake Elsinore, CA. Late in the week, heavy showers peppered several areas, including the Southeast and upper Midwest. Macon, GA, measured a daily-record sum (3.45 inches) on June 24, shortly after reporting highs of 100, 105, and 104°F from June 21-23. Similarly, St. Cloud, MN, received 4.28 inches from June 23-25, shortly after attaining 101°F on June 20. In Iowa, recordsetting rainfall totals for June 25 reached 2.99 inches in Cedar Rapids and 2.45 inches in Waterloo. Near- or above-normal Alaskan temperatures accompanied scattered showers. Fairbanks received its first measurable rain of the month, collecting 0.53 inch on June 19-20. In western Alaska, significant rainfall totals on June 25 included 0.92 inch on St. Paul Island (a record for the date); 0.54 inch in Cold Bay; and 0.43 inch in Nome. In southeastern Alaska, Ketchikan reported measurable rain each day from June 19-22, totaling 1.59 inches.

26-July 2: The tropics teased several regions, as a low-pressure system moved inland along the Texas coast and Tropical Storm Colin briefly formed (and moved inland) across South Carolina. However, neither system had much impact.

A weakening cold front contributed caused more substantial rain across the lower Southeastern rainfall, which locally totaled 2 to 4 inches or more.

The Southwestern monsoon circulation was responsible for locally heavy showers in the southern Rockies and environs. Interaction between the monsoon circulation and several cold fronts also enhanced rainfall in other areas, including the central Plains.

Torrential rain fell across parts of the southern Rockies and adjacent High Plains. In Roswell, NM, a 2.32-inch rainfall on the 26th represented the fourth-highest June daily total in that location. Even with the late-June burst of rain, Roswell’s January-June total of 3.53 inches was just 83 percent of normal. Meanwhile in the Desert Southwest, record-setting totals for June 26 included 0.18 inch in Phoenix, AZ, and 0.02 inch in Needles, CA. Alamosa, CO, netted a record-setting sum (0.63 inch) for June 27. Meanwhile, a late-June increase in rainfall in the western and central Gulf Coast States was partly attributable to a weak lowpressure system. From June 27-29, precipitation in Victoria, TX, totaled 3.79 inches—the first measurable rain in that location since June 1. Prior to the late-month rainfall, Victoria had set a June record with 11 days of triple-digit heat (previously, 8 days in 2009). Elsewhere in Texas, a 6.20-inch deluge occurred on July 1 in Beaumont-Port Arthur. During the mid- to late-week period, shower activity also increased across the remainder of the South. Recordsetting totals for June 29 included 1.87 inches in Charleston, SC, and 1.63 inches in Jackson, MS. A few days later, on July 2, Tropical Storm Colin briefly affected the coastal Carolinas and neighboring areas, with most impacts remaining offshore. Jacksonville, FL, received 2.46 inches of rain from July 1-3, following its driest June on record (1.17 inches, or 15 percent of normal; previously, 1.25 inches in 1879). The first day of July featured daily-record rainfall amounts in several Southeastern locations, including Fort Myers, FL (3.94 inches), and Saint Simons Island, GA (2.49 inches). Elsewhere, spotty, late-week showers resulted in daily-record totals in Alliance, NE (1.41 inches on June 30), and Amarillo, TX (0.94 inch on July 2).

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