NATIONAL STORM SUMMARY

JUNE 2026

May 31-June 6: Stormy weather across the nation’s mid-section provided some drought relief but also led to locally severe thunderstorms, featuring flash flooding, wind damage, and large hail. Additionally, rain bypassed some areas, leaving drought impacts—such as poor rangeland and pasture conditions—fully intact. Rainfall totals were highly variable, though 2- to 4-inch amounts dotted the Plains, upper Midwest, and central Gulf Coast region.

As heavy precipitation departed Montana, showers shifted to other parts of the Plains, as well as scattered areas across the South and Midwest. One of the week’s larger severe weather outbreaks occurred on June 1 from the central Plains into the Southwest; thunderstorm-related wind gusts in Kansas were clocked to 70 mph in Garden City and 65 mph in Dodge City. In the south-central U.S., daily-record rainfall totals for June 2 included 2.62 inches in Harlingen, TX, and 0.96 inch in Roswell, NM. By June 3, identical daily-record rainfall of 2.65 inches pelted Concordia, KS, and Lafayette, LA, while 1.88 inches fell in Grand Forks, ND. Late in the week, daily-record totals ranged from 2 to 4 inches in locations such as Fort Smith, AR (3.95 inches on June 6); San Antonio, TX (2.97 inches on June 5); Dubuque, IA (2.49 inches on June 5); and New Iberia, LA (2.47 inches on June 6). The 5th featured 4.42 inches of rain in Key West, FL, marking the wettest June day in that location since June 25, 1992, when 5.14 inches fell. It was also Key West’s wettest day at any time of year since September 12, 2020, when Tropical Storm Sally—later a hurricane—dumped 9.37 inches. On the Big Island, Hilo’s weekly rainfall totaled 6.69 inches, with consecutive daily records (2.04 and 3.00 inches, respectively) occurring on May 31 and June 1. At the state’s other major airport observation sites, rainfall during the first 6 days of June ranged from 0.04 inch (36 percent of normal) in Honolulu, Oahu, to 0.24 inch (77 percent) in Lihue, Kauai.

June 7-13: Heavy showers of 2 to 6 inches or more in parts of the central Corn Belt and locally severe thunderstorms peppered the Midwest, resulting in localized wind and hail damage to crops. According to preliminary National Weather Service reports, the severe weather—which peaked from June 9-11— resulted in several dozen tornadoes and led to more than 1,000 reports of wind damage. Occasional showers and thunderstorms extended into other regions, including the Plains, South, and East, although rainfall coverage was spotty. Outside the central Corn Belt, some of the heaviest rain fell across the east-central and southeastern Plains, as well as the Tennessee Valley.

Early-week downpours dotted areas from the eastern Plains into the Mississippi and Tennessee Valleys. Record-setting rainfall totals for June 7 included 3.98 inches in Columbia, MO, and 3.55 inches in Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW), TX. During the first 7 days of June, DFW’s rainfall reached 7.16 inches. As the week progressed, daily rainfall records were established in various locations across the Plains, South, East, and Midwest. In fact, daily-record totals topped the 3-inch mark in Cape Girardeau, MO (3.92 inches on June 8); Lexington, KY (3.45 inches on June 9); Punta Gorda, FL (3.69 inches on June 12); and Harrison, AR (3.42 inches). During the first 13 days of June, rainfall topped the 5-inch mark in Missouri locations such as Columbia (5.93 inches) and Cape Girardeau (5.33 inches), as well as Quincy, IL (6.30 inches). Heavy showers shifted into the Appalachians and Northeast on June 10, when daily-record amounts included 1.74 inches in Syracuse, NY, and 1.53 inches in Beckley, WV. The following day, June 11, featured daily-record totals in Binghamton, NY (1.69 inches), and Portland, ME (1.48 inches). Late-week precipitation overspread the Northwest, where Gold Butte, MT, received 1.35 inches of rain in a 24-hour period on June 10-11. Later, the week ended on June 13 with daily-record amounts in Wyoming locations such as Sheridan (0.94 inch) and Buffalo (0.61 inch). Through the week, thunderstorms resulted in localized wind damage, with official gusts being clocked to 94 mph (on June 10) in Oshkosh, WI; 79 mph (on June 13) in Kansas City, MO; 76 mph (on June 12) at Wallops Island, VA; and 69 mph (on June 11) at New York’s LaGuardia Airport. An officially logged wind gust of 113 mph in Salina, KS, on June 8 was being investigated for accuracy. In western and central North Dakota, numerous reports of 60 to 98 mph wind gusts were logged on June 7 by a network of state-run observation sites, with the highest gust noted near Emmet, ND.

Most of Alaska, excluding the state’s western tier, received some precipitation during the week. Kodiak collected a daily-record rain fall of 1.47 inches on June 13 and netted more than 6 inches during the first 14 days of the month. Farther south, Hawaiian showers remained locally heavy in windward locations. On the Big Island, Hilo’s June 1-13 rainfall totaled 8.18 inches (278 percent of normal). Hilo also measured a daily record sum of 1.99 inches on June 10. At the state’s other major airport observation sites, rainfall during the first 13 days of June ranged from 0.04 inch (18 percent of normal) in Honolulu, Oahu, to 0.61 inch (85 percent) in Lihue, Kauai.

14-20: Tropical Storm Arthur briefly formed near the middle Texas coast on June 17, hours before wobbling inland near Galveston. However, a precursor low-pressure system delivered heavy rain in parts of southern Texas, followed by a post-tropical deluge from the central Gulf Coast region into the lower Southeast. Totals of 4 to 8 inches or more were common across the Deep South, with higher amounts observed in several spots. Although flash flooding and lowland flooding occurred, overall impacts were muted by antecedent drought, which until recently had spanned the South.

Early in the week, the low-pressure system that on June 17 would briefly become Tropical Storm Arthur traversed northeastern Mexico and southern Texas. Meanwhile, a separate disturbance triggered some Southwestern showers, leading to daily-record totals in El Paso, TX (1.35 inches on June 14), and Prescott, AZ (0.69 inch on June 15). Farther east, heavy showers in the vicinity of a cold front soaked the central Gulf Coast region, long before Arthur’s arrival. On June 15, Shreveport, LA, collected a daily record sum of 2.57 inches, followed the next day by record-setting amounts of 3.97 inches in Baton Rouge, LA, and 4.20 inches in Hattiesburg, MS. In south-central Texas, 2 days before Arthur’s naming, daily-record totals for June 15 included 3.24 inches in Austin (Camp Mabry) and 2.60 inches in San Antonio. On June 17, as Arthur approached Galveston, TX, a peak southeasterly wind gust to 65 mph was clocked. By June 18, Arthur’s remnant circulation delivered another round of torrential rain in the central Gulf Coast States, with daily-record totals reaching 7.75 inches in New Orleans, LA; 4.50 inches in Gulfport, MS; and 4.49 inches in Mobile, AL. Heavy rain spread into Georgia, where Columbus collected 3.96 inches, a record for June 18. With 6.63 inches on June 19, Alma, GA, weathered its wettest June day, surpassing 4.42 inches with Hurricane Agnes on June 19, 1972. Southeastern showers lingered through June 20, when daily-record amounts included 3.04 inches in Birmingham, AL, and 2.85 inches in Fort Pierce, FL. Farther north, a series of cold fronts sparked showers and locally severe thunderstorms. Daily-record totals exceeded the 2-inch mark in several locations, including Wilmington, DE (2.17 inches on June 14); Peoria, IL (2.24 inches on June 17); Louisville, KY (3.38 inches on June 18); and Broken Bow, NE (2.21 inches on June 20). Alaskan precipitation was mostly light, aside from higher totals across the state’s southern tier. Yakutat netted a daily-record rainfall of 3.47 inches on June 14.

Warm, mostly dry weather prevailed in Hawaii. Daily-record highs included 91°F (on June 20) in Honolulu, Oahu, and 86°F (on June 18) in Hilo, on the Big Island. At the state’s major airport observation sites, June 1-20 rainfall ranged from 0.06 inch (18 percent of normal) in Honolulu to 8.31 inches (177 percent) in Hilo. Most of Hilo’s rain, 7.73 inches, fell during the first 10 days of June.

21-27: Chaotic weather delivered heavy showers and locally severe thunderstorms east of the Rockies, with a few exceptions. Some of the heaviest rain, locally 4 to 8 inches or more, fell from the southern Plains into the Ohio Valley, leading to pockets of flash flooding and lowland flooding. Several flood-related fatalities were reported at week’s end in Kentucky. Exceptions to the wet pattern included the western Gulf Coast region, parts of the Southeast, and an area stretching from the east-central Plains into the Great Lakes region.

A late-week pattern change delivered cooler Western weather, along with widespread Northwestern showers. During the transition from hot to cool weather, gusty winds and low humidity levels favored wildfire ignition and rapid expansion, especially in portions of the Great Basin and Four Corners States. Near the end of June, at least a half-dozen active wildfires in Utah had scorched more than 10,000 acres.

Daily-record totals topping the 2-inch mark were scattered across the central and eastern U.S. A chronological partial list of those records included 2.91 inches (on June 22) in Jonesboro, AR; 2.68 inches (on June 22) in Beckley, WV; 2.62 inches (on June 23) in Pueblo, CO; 2.19 inches (on June 23) in Norfolk, VA; 2.12 inches (on June 24) in Dodge City, KS; 2.49 inches (on June 25) in Gaylord, MI; 3.06 inches (on June 27) in Evansville, IN; and 2.34 inches (on June 27) in Bowling Green, KY. With a 5.31-inch total on June 25, Wichita, KS, experienced its second-wettest June day, behind only 6.82 inches on June 8, 1923. It was also Wichita’s wettest day at any time of year since July 2, 2016, when 5.72 inches fell. Among some of the more impressive officially observed thunderstorm-related winds were gusts to 82 mph (on June 21) in Garden City, KS; 73 mph (on June 22) in Rawlins, WY; 71 mph (on June 23) in Lubbock, TX; and 86 mph (on June 26) in Stillwater, OK. During the second half of the week, active weather arrived in the Northwest, where daily-record rainfall totals for June 25 included 0.35 inch in Portland, OR, and 0.29 inch in Buffalo, WY. Another round of precipitation on June 27 resulted in daily-record totals in locations such as Montana’s Dillon Airport (1.17 inches), Twin Falls, ID (0.36 inch), and Elko, NV (0.33 inch).

Farther south, Hawaii’s spell of mostly tranquil weather continued, with June 1-27 rainfall at the state’s major airport observation sites ranging from 0.32 inch (71 percent of normal) in Honolulu, Oahu, to 10.03 inches (154 percent) in Hilo, on the Big Island. Most of Hilo’s rain, 7.73 inches, fell during the first 10 days of June.

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