NATIONAL STORM SUMMARY

 

MAY 2026

 

1-7: An ongoing atmospheric block kept unsettled, showery weather in place across much of the eastern U.S. and parts of the West, especially from northern California to the northern Intermountain West. In the East, persistent showers helped to erase most of the dryness that had developed in recent weeks. Some of the heaviest showers soaked the Mid-Atlantic States, where weekly rainfall totaled 2 to 4 inches or more.  Meanwhile, cool weather and scattered showers fell across the South. Some of the South’s heaviest rain fell at mid-week across Florida’s peninsula. During the second half of the week, significant precipitation overspread parts of the West, with the highest amounts noted across Wyoming.

 

Early in the week, locally heavy showers peppered the South. Record-setting rainfall totals for May 1 reached 5.20 inches in Lake Charles, LA; 2.58 inches in Anniston, AL; and 2.08 inches in Jackson, KY. In Virginia, daily-record amounts for May 2 included 1.39 inches at Dulles Airport and 1.31 inches in Richmond. At midweek, heavy rain in Florida led to daily-record amounts for May 4 in locations such as Sarasota-Bradenton (3.40 inches) and Tampa

(2.79 inches). Farther north, pesky rain in the lower Great Lakes region led to daily-record totals for the 4th in Houghton Lake, MI (0.94 inch), and South Bend, IN (0.84 inch). Heavy rain lingered in the Mid-Atlantic region through May 6, when Atlantic City, NJ, collected a daily-record sum of 1.18 inches. During the second half of the week, showers erupted across parts of the West. Daily-record amounts for May 5 totaled 0.75 inch in Reno, NV, and 0.65 inch in Redmond, OR. The following day, record-setting totals for May 6 included 1.17 inches in Big Piney, WY; 0.58 inch in Alturas, CA; and 0.46 inch in Elko, NV. Big Piney also netted daily-record totals of 0.75 inch on May 7 and 0.48 inch on May 8. Elsewhere in

Wyoming, daily-record amounts on the 7th totaled 3.35 inches in Lander, 0.96 inch in Laramie, and 0.78 inch in Rock Springs. Three-day (May 6-8) rainfall reached 4.45 inches in Lander and 2.40 inches in Big Piney. Late-week showers also dampened parts of southern California, where record-breaking totals for May 7 included 0.83 inch in Oceanside Harbor and 0.56 inch in Los Angeles (LAX Airport).

 

A cold frontal boundary associated with this system produced strong to severe thunderstorms across the central Plains and the middle Mississippi Valley. Severe thunderstorm watches were issued for central and southern Illinois, as well as eastern Missouri. Wahoo, Neb., reported a midday total of 2.13 inches of rain. Omaha, Neb., reported a midday total of 1.63 inches of rain.

15-21: A low pressure system moved across the Great Basin on Tuesday, while a stormy weather pattern impacted the East Coast.  A slow moving low pressure system shifted southward over the Great Basin and the Southwest. This system generated showers and isolated thunderstorms across southern California, southern Nevada and the Four Corners. High elevation snow also affected the Wasatch and the Rockies. Buckhorn Mountain, Colo., reported a midday total of 5.8 inches of snow. Pingree Park, Colo., reported a midday total of 3.0 inches of snow. Further to the east, strong thunderstorms and heavy rain fired up over the southern Plains. Severe thunderstorm warnings were issued for portions of western Texas. Heavy rain and strong thunderstorms also impacted the Deep South, the Southeast and the Mid-Atlantic. Brookhaven, Miss., reported a midday total of 2.08 inches of rain. Slidell, La., reported a midday total of 2.01 inches of rain. A frontal system extended west southwestward from New England to the central Plains.

 

Widespread snow showers accompanied the late-season cold snap. Grand Rapids, MI, received its first trace of snow on May 15 since 1973. Similarly in New York, Buffalo and Rochester noted their first traces of snow on May 15 since 1959. Accumulating snow spread across northern New England on May 16, when Caribou, ME, collected a daily-record total of 4.5 inches. Meanwhile, torrential rainfall drenched parts of southern and eastern Texas.

McAllen, TX, netted a daily-record sum of 2.91 inches on May 15. Corpus Christi, TX, officially reported 5.01 inches of rain on May 15-16, while totals reached 10 to 12 inches or more in neighboring communities such as Ingleside and Aransas Pass. On May 17, inundating rainfall drenched parts of Florida, where Vero Beach (11.22 inches) experienced its wettest day on record. Previously, Vero Beach’s wettest day had been 8.82 inches on January 21, 1957, while its wettest day in May had been 5.50 inches on May 9, 1979. Elsewhere in Florida, daily-record totals for May 17 included 3.12 inches in Daytona Beach and 2.99 inches in Melbourne. Heavy showers lingered for several days in various parts of Florida; daily-record amounts reached 2.32 inches (on May 18) in West Palm Beach and 3.27 inches (on May 19) in Vero Beach. Elsewhere, daily-record totals topped 2 inches in several locations, including Austin, TX (2.75 inches on May 19); Joplin, MO (2.48 inches on May 16); and Savannah, GA (2.29 inches on May 17). Late in the week, a pattern change brought cool, showery weather to the Northwest. On May 20, Jerome, ID, collected a daily-record rainfall (0.53 inch), while Meacham, OR, posted a daily-record low (28F). A day later, Wenatchee, WA, tallied a daily-record rainfall (0.65 inch) for May 21.

 

23-31: A frontal system drifted across the Plains on Monday, while a low pressure system affected the East Coast. A low pressure system moved northeastward over the upper Intermountain West and southern Canada. This system ushered a mixture of rain and snow across the Pacific Northwest, the northern Rockies and the northern high Plains. Flood warnings and flood advisories were issued in western Montana on Monday. Meanwhile, a cold frontal boundary stretched southward across the northern Plains, the central Plains and the southern high Plains. Strong to severe thunderstorms developed along and ahead of this frontal boundary over the upper Mississippi Valley, the central Plains and the southern Plains. Flash flood warnings were issued for eastern Kansas and western Missouri. McConnell Air Force Base, Kan., reported a midday total of 3.24 inches of rain. Kansas City, Mo., reported a midday total of 2.42 inches of rain. Back east, an area of low pressure pushed northeastward across the northern Mid-Atlantic. This system produced showers and embedded thunderstorms over the central Appalachians and the Mid-Atlantic. Louisa, Va., reported a midday total of 1.00 inch of rain.

Weather Underground midday recap for Wednesday, May 25, 2016

A deep trough of low pressure transitioned slowly across the Southwest. Temperatures remained 10 to 20 degrees below normal across the Pacific Northwest, the Southwest and the Intermountain West. Grand Canyon, Ariz., recorded a morning low of 26 degrees. Big Bear City, Calif., also recorded a morning low of 26 degrees. Cool air, combined with daytime heating, triggered showers and isolated thunderstorms from the Sierra Nevada to the upper Intermountain West. Just to the east, strong to severe thunderstorms fired up across portions of the central Plains, the northern Plains, the middle Mississippi Valley, the upper Mississippi Valley and the Tennessee Valley. Flood warnings were issued from the northern high Plains to the lower Mississippi Valley. Okmulgee, Okla., reported a midday total of 2.93 inches of rain. Siloam Springs, Ark., reported a midday total of 2.09 inches of rain.

A low pressure system transitioned across the southern Plains on Friday, while a cold front shifted over the Intermountain West. An area of low pressure moved northeastward across the southern and central Plains. A cluster of strong to severe thunderstorms broke out over the southern Plains and the lower Mississippi Valley. Flash flood warnings and severe thunderstorm watches were issued for eastern Texas and western Louisiana. Huntsville, Texas, reported a midday total of 4.30 inches of rain. College Station, Texas, reported a midday total of 2.80 inches of rain. Showers and thunderstorms also fired up from the central and northern Plains to the western Great Lakes. Emporia, Kan., reported a midday total of 1.14 inches of rain.

 

A frontal system moved across the Intermountain West on Monday, while the remnants of Tropical Storm Bonnie impacted the East Coast. A low pressure system moved eastward across the northern high Plains. This system ushered rain and embedded thunderstorms across the northern Rockies and the northern Plains. Meanwhile, A warm frontal boundary produced moderate to heavy rain and thunderstorms over the central and southern Plains. Flash flood warnings were issued for western Missouri on Monday. Granbury, Texas, reported a midday total of 2.05 inches of rain. Durant, Okla., reported a midday total of 1.88 inches of rain. Back east, the remnant low associated with Tropical Storm Bonnie stalled out over The Carolinas. This system, combined with an approaching cold front, generated widespread rain and isolated thunderstorms across the Eastern Seaboard. Flood advisories were issued in eastern North Carolina. Hatteras, N.C., reported a midday total of 4.90 inches of rain. Plymouth, Mass., reported a midday total of 2.31 inches of rain.

 

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