NATIONAL STORM SUMMARY

NOVEMBER 2024

Oct. 27-Nov. 2:  A dramatic pattern change delivered late-October and early-November precipitation across the Northwest and a broad area of the nation’s mid-section, including the southeastern half of the Plains and parts of the mid-South and Midwest. Some of the heaviest rain (locally 4 to 8 inches or more) fell across the previously parched southern Plains, with some immediate benefits for surface water supplies, as well as rangeland, pastures, and winter wheat. By the night of November 2-3, significant rain had spread as far east as the Mississippi Valley.

A pair of storm systems traversing the western U.S. delivered widespread precipitation, heaviest in the Northwest. Additionally, cooler weather helped to establish high-elevation Western snowpack, except across the region’s southern tier. As the initial storm system reached the north central U.S. in late October, wet snow briefly blanketed portions of the upper Great Lakes region.

record-setting warmth dominated the central and eastern U.S., with weekly temperatures broadly averaging 5 to 15°F above normal—except across the northern High Plains, Florida’s peninsula, and parts of New England. The warmest weather, relative to normal, stretched from the southeastern and east-central Plains into the western and central Gulf Coast States and parts of the mid South. Farther west, cooler-than-normal conditions were prevalent across the Pacific Coast States and the Great Basin, with temperatures averaging as much as 5°F below normal. As the week began, record-setting warmth quickly advanced northeastward from the southwestern and south-central U.S. On October 27, Tucson, AZ, logged a daily record high of 98°F. El Paso, TX, opened the week (on October 27-28) with a pair of 91°F high temperatures. Prior to this year, El Paso’s latest 90-degree heat had occurred on October 26, 1979. With a high of 91°F on October 28, Fort Smith, AR, also registered its latest 90-degree heat (previously, 90°F on October 26, 1891). Similarly, Traverse City, MI, notched a high of 80°F on October 29. Previously, Traverse City’s latest 80-degree reading had been observed on October 28, 1927. The warmth, in advance of a series of Western storms, eventually blanketed nearly all the central and eastern U.S. On October 29, temperatures soared to daily-record levels above the 80-degree mark as far north as Wisconsin locations such as Green Bay (82°F) and Appleton (81°F). In Texas, College Station set an October record of 23 days with 90-degree heat, smashing the mark of 17 days set in 1931 and 1938. College Station ended October with a 7-day streak of high temperatures reaching 90°F or greater. Similar records (days of 90-degree heat in October) were broken in many other Texas communities, including Del Rio (25 days), Austin (23 days), Waco (20 days), Wichita Falls (20 days), Corpus Christi (20 days), Houston (18 days), San Angelo (18 days), Lubbock (16 days), Childress (14 days), Beaumont Port Arthur (12 days), Borger (11 days), and Amarillo (10 days), along with locations in neighboring states, such as Shreveport, LA (15 days), and Fort Smith, AR (11 days). Meanwhile, it was the warmest Halloween (October 31) on record in dozens of towns and cities across the South and East, with temperatures in Texas soaring to 95°F in Laredo and McAllen. Daily-record readings for October 31 topped the 80-degree mark into southern New England, with the high reaching 84°F in Hartford, CT. In northern New England, record-setting highs for the 31st reached 77°F in Caribou, ME, and Burlington, VT. Northeastern warmth lingered into November 1, when daily-record highs included a second consecutive reading of 84°F in Hartford, CT, and 80°F in Providence, RI. In contrast, sharply cooler air spread from the West into the upper Midwest, with Chanhassen, MN, reporting snowfall totaling 0.7 inch on October 31. November began with a daily record low (31°F on the 1st) in Ramona, CA.

Changes were apparent by October 29, where daily-record amounts in Wyoming totaled 0.85 inch in Casper and 0.57 inch in Worland. Riverton, WY, received 3.1 inches of snow on October 29. In Sioux City, IA, an October 1-29 precipitation sum of a trace was followed by a rainfall total of 0.62 inch on the final 2 days of the month. Daily precipitation records for October 30 were broken in Midwestern locations such as Dubuque, IA (2.54 inches), and Madison, WI (2.21 inches). It was the wettest Halloween on record in Harrison, AR (2.56 inches), and Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN (1.26 inches), with the latter location also receiving wet snowfall totaling 0.2 inch. As November began, the focus for heavy precipitation briefly shifted to a newly arrived storm system in the Northwest, where record-setting amounts for the 1st in Washington reached 1.32 inches in Bellingham and 0.83 inch in Omak. By November 2, heavy rain on the Plains led to daily-record totals in Wichita, KS (3.13 inches); Childress, TX (3.03 inches); and Roswell, NM (1.75 inches). In Amarillo, TX, where 2.63 inches fell on the 2nd, it was the wettest November day on record, surpassing 2.36 inches on November 16, 1928.

3-9: Multiple rounds of heavy precipitation across the nation’s mid-section led to weekly totals ranging from 2 to 4 inches or more from the central and southern Rockies into the middle and lower Mississippi Valley. A few areas, mainly in Louisiana and from west-central Arkansas into east-central Missouri, received rainfall totaling at least 8 inches, leading to flash flooding and— eventually—river flooding.

A separate, smaller area of heavy rain affected the southern Atlantic States, extending as far north as central South Carolina. However, much of the remainder of the eastern U.S. remained dry, as record-setting streaks without measurable rain reached 6 weeks in some locations. Additionally, there was an increase in Northeastern wildfire activity, especially late in the week. Meanwhile, much of the West experienced cool, dry weather, with notable exceptions.

Active weather dominated the nation’s mid section. On November 4, more than a dozen tornadoes were spotted from northeastern Texas into Missouri, cutting across eastern Oklahoma and northwestern Arkansas. Downpours had developed the previous day, with daily-record totals ranging from 3 to 5 inches occurring on November 3 in Fort Smith, AR (4.85 inches); Joplin, MO (3.50 inches); Chanute, KS (3.35 inches); and Oklahoma City, OK (3.34 inches). November 4 was the wettest day on record in Harrison, AR, where 7.83 inches fell (previously, 5.70 inches on August 19, 1915), and the wettest November day in St. Louis, MO, where 3.75 inches fell (previously, 3.56 inches on November 18, 1921). Incredibly, St. Louis set another record on November 5, with a 3.89-inch total. St. Louis easily experienced its wettest 2-day period on record in November, with 7.64 inches. With Harrison reporting a November 3-4 sum of 10.28 inches and a November 3-5 total of 12.37 inches, all-time station records were broken for both time periods (previously, 8.95 inches on December 2-3, 1982, and 10.29 inches on April 23-25, 2011). In east-central Missouri, the Meramec River rose to its highest level since May 2017. Near Sullivan, MO, the Meramec River climbed 19.71 feet above flood stage on November 6, the seventh-highest crest on record and 5.81 feet below the 2017 high-water mark. Farther west, a smaller area of Southeastern downpours delivered 4.57 inches, a record for November 6, in Augusta, GA. Meanwhile, two major rounds of heavy, wet snow blanketed eastern Colorado and environs. From November 5-9, snowfall in Colorado totaled 20.0 inches in Denver and 19.3 inches in Colorado Springs, with many 3- to 5-foot totals reported in the adjacent Rockies. Denver (18.2 inches from November 5-8) experienced its fourth-snowiest 4-day period in November, behind 30.4 inches on November 2-5, 1946; 22.4 inches on November 26-29, 1983; and 20.1 inches on November 16-19, 1991. Heavy snow extended as far east as the Kansas border and southward into northeastern New Mexico and the northwestern corner of Texas. Just to the east, Dodge City, KS, experienced its wettest November day on record, with 3.42 inches on the 8th (previously, 2.08 inches on November 28, 1909). At week’s end, another round of heavy rain spread eastward, with daily-record amounts topping 3 inches in Tulsa, OK (3.37 inches on the 8th) and Alexandria, LA (4.62 inches on the 9th). In stark contrast, November 9 marked 6 weeks (42 days, starting September 29) without measurable rain in Trenton, NJ; Philadelphia, PA; and Wilmington, DE.

10-16: Rain shifted eastward, following the previous week’s heavy precipitation across the nation’s mid-section.

Heavy, wet snow was slow to melt across the High Plains, from eastern Colorado into northeastern New maintaining stress Mexico, on livestock. However, moisture from the slowly melting snow also provided a much-needed boost in soil moisture.

Light showers dampened parts of the Northeast on November 10 11, ending long-running dry spells. Streaks without measurable precipitation had reached 42 days (September 29 – November 9) in many towns and cities, including Trenton, NJ; Philadelphia, PA; and Wilmington, DE. November 10-11 rainfall in those locations totaled 0.24 inch in Trenton, 0.31 inch in Philadelphia, and 0.51 inch in Wilmington. Elsewhere in Delaware, Georgetown’s spell without measurable rain lasted 43 days, starting September 28. Farther west, increasingly stormy weather in the Northwest included rain and snow. Hoquiam, WA, received measurable rain each day during the week, totaling 4.21 inches, with more than an inch falling on November 13 and 16. In eastern Washington, Spokane reported its first measurable snowfall of the season, 1.2 inches, on November 16. Astoria, OR, clocked a southerly wind gust to 62 mph on November 13. Later, additional Western precipitation led to daily-record totals in Winnemucca, NV (0.27 inch on the 15th), and Glasgow, MT (0.32 inch on the 16th). Meanwhile, mid- to late-week rain swept across portions of the South, East, and Midwest. Record-setting rainfall totals for November 13 included 2.01 inches in Hattiesburg, MS, and 1.20 inches in Bowling Green, KY. By November 14 in West Virginia, daily-record amounts included 1.51 inches in Huntington and 1.50 inches in Charleston. Cape Hatteras, NC, collected a record-setting sum (2.32 inches) for November 15.

17-23: A complex and powerful Pacific storm system delivered heavy mid- to late-week precipitation, including high elevation snow, across northern California and from the northern Pacific Coast to the northern Rockies. In northern California, heavy rain led to flooding along several waterways, with minor to moderate flooding reported along the Russian River. Earlier in the week, a moisture-laden storm system had produced heavy rain across portions of the Plains and South, helping to propel some locations as far north as Kansas to their wettest November on record.

24-30: Heavy precipitation subsided early in the week across the West, although heavy, high-elevation snow lingered from the southern Sierra Nevada to the central Rockies. Thereafter, any meaningful precipitation shifted eastward, from the Ohio Valley into the Northeast, with impressive snow squalls developing downwind of the Great Lakes. A late-week streak of snow dusted areas from Kansas to the central Appalachians, while snow from earlier storm systems remained on the ground across parts of the nation’s northern tier. In fact, snow covered approximately one-quarter of the Lower 48 States by the end of November, including higher elevations of the West from the Cascades and Sierra Nevada to the northern and central Rockies.

As the week progressed, increasingly cold air overwhelmed much of the country, with the strongest surge occurring near the end of November. With long trajectories of cold air across the still-warm Great Lakes, snow showers raged in squall-prone locations. During the last 6 days of the month, snowfall totaled 42.0 inches in Sault Ste. Marie, MI, with 15.7 inches falling on November 29. That marked the second-snowiest November day on record in Sault Ste. Marie, behind only 18.2 inches on November 13, 2014. Elsewhere on the 29th, it was the snowiest day on record, during any month, in Gaylord, MI (24.8 inches), and Erie, PA (22.6 inches). Previous records had been 17.0 inches in Gaylord on March 9, 1942, and 21.8 inches in Erie on December 26, 2017. More modest snowfall totals were noted across most of the northern and western U.S. In Montana, Billings measured a daily-record snowfall of 3.3 inches on November 24. Later, Ely, NV, noted a record-setting total (6.1 inches) for November 26, followed by a post storm temperature of -1°F on the 28th. Meanwhile, rain pelted California’s San Joaquin Valley, where daily-record amounts for November 26 included 1.00 inch in Hanford and 0.89 inch in Bakersfield. Thanksgiving Day (November 28) featured additional snow in parts of Montana, where Stanford witnessed 6.0 inches, a record for the date. Late in the week, precipitation was mostly limited to the snow-belt region of the Great Lakes. Despite no measurable precipitation during the last 12 days of the month, Wichita, KS, completed its wettest November on record, with 6.99 inches (previously, 6.69 inches in 1909). Elsewhere in Kansas, Medicine Lodge (7.17 inches) also broke a November precipitation record originally set in 1909, while Chanute (8.56 inches) edged its November 1931 standard of 8.35 inches. Conversely, many mid Atlantic locations completed their driest autumn on record, with September-November totals of 1.78 inches in Georgetown, DE; 2.94 inches in Atlantic City, NJ; 3.58 inches in Allentown, PA; and 4.13 inches at JFK Airport in New York.

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