NATIONAL STORM SUMMARY

NOVEMBER 2020

1-7:  Late in the week, however, rain and gusty winds associated with Tropical Storm Eta began to overspread southern Florida. Eta made landfall in the Florida Keys around 11 pm EST on November 8—and will be covered in more detail next week.

 

Early in the week, a brief surge of cool air engulfed the Midwest and East. On November 1, wind gusts were clocked to 58 mph in Traverse City, MI, and 52 mph in Cleveland, OH. November 2 snowfall totaled 1.5 inches in Binghamton, NY, and 0.3 inch in Scranton, PA. Snow lingered in New England into November 3, when daily-record amounts included 1.8 inches in Bangor, ME, and 0.9 inch in Worcester, MA. Farther south, Orlando, FL, netted a daily-record rainfall total of 2.18 inches on November 1. Meanwhile, windy weather preceded the arrival of Northwestern precipitation. On November 5, Cut Bank, MT, reported a daily average wind speed of 31.7 mph and a peak gust to 73 mph. On November 5-6, Pendleton, OR, reported consecutive daily record rainfall amounts (0.53 and 1.02 inches, respectively). Other daily record totals in Oregon on November 6 included 1.37 inches in Meacham and 0.55 inch in Hermiston. By November 7-8, snow blanketed portions of Montana, where Great Falls reported 12.5 inches and a peak wind gust to 50 mph. Snow also fell in parts of the Great Basin, where daily-record totals for the 7th in Nevada reached 6.9 inches in Winnemucca and 2.9 inches in Elko. Winnemucca’s November 7- 9 snowfall totaled 11.7 inches. In Las Vegas, NV, however, the streak without measurable precipitation stretched to 201 days (April 21 – November 7), easily surpassing the record of 150 days set from February 22 – July 21, 1959. Similarly, the longest dry spell in Bishop, CA, reached 204 days (April 18 – November 7). Bishop’s previous record of 199 days without measurable rain had occurred from April 23 – November 7, 2003. Elsewhere, rain overspread southern Florida in advance of Tropical Storm Eta’s arrival; Key West netted a daily-record sum of 2.95 inches on November 7.

 

9-14: The interaction between Tropical Storm Eta and a cold front delivered heavy rain across portions of the middle and southern Atlantic States. Although torrential rain in Virginia and the Carolinas was not directly related to the late-season former hurricane, there was enough of a tropical connection to spark moderate to major flooding in several river basins. Meanwhile, Eta twice made landfall in Florida—first on Lower Matecumbe Key on November 8 around 11 pm EST and finally on the Gulf Coast near Cedar Key on November 12 at 4 am Sustained winds were 65 and 50 mph, respectively. Aside from gusty winds, locally above 50 mph across Florida’s peninsula, Eta’s primary impact was flash flooding from heavy rain. Eta produced 6 to 18 inches of rain in southeastern Florida and as much as 6 to 10 inches in the vicinity of Tampa Bay.  In southern Florida, a multi-day rainfall event associated with Tropical Storm Eta’s approach and passage led to November 5-12 totals of 8.34 inches in Miami and 9.75 inches in Fort Lauderdale. More than onehalf (5.93 inches) of Fort Lauderdale’s rain fell on the 8th. Also on November 8, wind gusts were clocked to 50 mph in Miami and 52 mph in Fort Lauderdale. Later, on the 11th, Florida daily-record amounts reached 6.41 inches in Sarasota-Bradenton and 3.99 inches in Tampa. On the same date, Sarasota-Bradenton noted a wind gust to 53 mph. Farther north, a cold front crossing the Midwest delivered heavy precipitation on November 10, when daily-record totals included 1.67 inches in Dubuque, IA, and 1.56 inches in Oshkosh, WI. Duluth, MN, received a daily-record snowfall (7.3 inches) on November 10, a day after a daily-record rainfall of 1.18 inches occurred. Farther west, early-week snow in the Rockies, Great Basin, and Intermountain West led to record-setting totals for November 8 in Havre, MT (7.8 inches); Winnemucca, NV (4.1 inches); and Boise, ID (2.7 inches). By November 11, heavy rain erupted across the middle and southern Atlantic States, leading to daily-record totals in locations such as Danville, VA (3.58 inches), and Fayetteville, NC (2.84 inches). Fayetteville also collected a daily-record sum (2.69 inches) for November 12. Elsewhere in North Carolina, daily-record amounts for the 12th reached 4.62 inches in Charlotte, 4.38 inches in New Bern, and 4.13 inches in Wilmington. In the rain’s wake, a record crest was reported along Hunting Creek near Harmony, NC, when the water level rose 8.08 feet above flood stage on November 12 (previously, 7.05 feet on September 22, 1979). On November 12 in Brookneal, VA, the Roanoke River climbed 11.57 feet above flood stage—the highest level in that location since June 23, 1995.

 

22-28: Wet snow briefly accumulated toward week’s end in Texas’ northern panhandle and environs. Elsewhere, late-week precipitation also developed across the South, soaking portions of the western and central Gulf Coast States with as much as 2 to 6 inches of rain. 

 

Early-week precipitation was heaviest across parts of New England, where daily-record totals for November 23 included 2.38 inches in Augusta, ME, and 1.66 inches in Manchester, NH. The November 23 total of 2.00 inches in Caribou, ME, was not only a daily record, but also represented the wettest day in that location since August 9, 2018, when 2.10 inches fell. Later, heavy precipitation developed across portions of the central Plains and the Midwest. Record-setting precipitation totals for November 24 reached 1.48 inches in Salina, KS, and 1.38 inches in Ottumwa, IA. Daily-record snowfall amounts for the 24th included 5.0 inches in Denver, CO, and 4.0 inches in Rochester, MN. By mid-week, locally heavy showers overspread the Atlantic and Gulf Coast States. New Orleans, LA, netted a daily-record rainfall (3.68 inches) for November 25. The next day (Thanksgiving), Columbia, SC, reported a daily-record amount of 1.07 inches. Late in the week, gusty winds developed across southern California, while precipitation developed on the southern Plains and returned along the Gulf Coast. A wind gust to 79 mph was reported in southern California’s Fremont Canyon before daybreak on November 27. On the 28th, Dalhart, TX, set daily precipitation and snowfall records (0.35 and 3.2 inches, respectively). Near the Texas Gulf Coast, record-breaking rainfall totals for November 28 included 1.99 inches at Houston’s Hobby Airport, 1.52 inches in Victoria, and 1.31 inches in Corpus Christi.

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