Texas Almanac, 2000-2001 Page: 87
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Environment 87
Weather Service survey team arrived. Over 1,000
windows were broken out of homes and cars in
Devine, 12 homes were reported to have major
damage, and nearly 1,300 others suffered minor
damage. Tornadoes were reported in Wilson and
Frio counties, as well as straight winds of nearly 100
mph. As these storms moved eastward, high winds
downed nearly 103,000 acres of trees in Sabine and
Angelina National Forests, with damage estimated
at $150 million.
April-September: A drought gripped most of
Texas from the early spring into the late summer,
when the hurricane season brought welcome rains.
Both San Antonio and Midland endured the driest
April on record, with monthly rainfall totals of 0.05"
and 0.00," respectively. In May, the average precipi-
tation for the first-order stations was only 10% of
normal. By June, according to the Palmer Drought The
Severity Index, most stations were experiencing Cue
severe drought, and the East division was experienc- AP
ing extreme drought. Many temperature records were
set for May, June and July, and for the entire state in
general, July 1998 was the second-warmest July on record.
On July 6, Waco and Dallas/Fort Worth began a streak of 29
consecutive 100-degree days, and College Station's 30-day
streak broke the record of 26 set in 1917. From April through
July, San Antonio, College Station, Lubbock and Houston all
set records for the lowest amount of precipation during that
four-month period. The drought continued into August and
September for the northern portions of the state, while the
southern and coastal regions received much-needed rains.
With 56 days of 100 degrees or better, Dallas/Fort Worth
recorded their second-warmest summer, and Brownsville's
summer was their hottest on record, eclipsing the 1980 sum-
mer.
May: An unusual atmospheric phenomenon began
affecting Texas during the latter half of May. A dense, smoky
haze drifting north from Mexican forest fires entered South
Texas on the 12th. Over the next two weeks, the entire state
was affected by limited visibility and health cautions. At some
locations, concentrations of particulate matter exceeded
three times the accepted limit defined by the Environmental
Protection Agency. The concurrent dry spell resulted in very
little rain to wash the pollutants from the air. This lack of rain-
fall, a persistent high-pressure dome and a low-level temper-
ature inversion all helped trap the smoke and haze near the
surface, allowing the contaminants to linger for an extended
period of time.
June: The continued hot and dry conditions were partly
to blame for numerous wildfires across the state. The Texas
Emergency Response Division reported that wildfires burned
143,000 acres of land through the end of June, while the
Texas Forest Service estimated that more than 200,000
acres were affected by fires during this time period. A total of
3,042 fires were reported throughout May and June, mostly
in East and Central Texas.
August 22-25: Tropical Storm Charley made landfall on
the middle Texas coast near Port Aransas during the morning
of the 22nd. It was accompanied by welcome moisture, but it
also caused local flash flooding. Rain totaling 17.03 inches
fell in Del Rio on the 23rd, setting a record for a one-day
period. Southern Kimble and northern Edwards County in
the northwest Hill Country received three to six inches of rain
on this same day. Thirteen people lost their lives in flash
floods in Real and Val Verde counties, while more than 200
people were injured in these and other counties in the Hill
Country.
September 11-15: Southeastern Texas received more
than four inches of rainfall as Tropical Storm Frances made
landfall between Corpus Christi and Victoria on Friday morn-
ing, the 11th. As it drifted northward towards Victoria, it
dumped three to seven inches of rain in De Witt and Lavaca
counties. Rainfall totals of more than 10 inches were com-
mon in the coastal counties south and east of Houston. Two
swimmers drowned in the heavy surf on Galveston Island,
and a surfer drowned at Surfside in Brazoria County while
surfing the large waves.
October 17-19: One of the most disastrous floods in
Texas history brought tragedy and devastation to many parts
of South Central Texas. A very slow-moving upper level
trough of low pressure, a cold front, and a continuous stream
of moisture at both low and upper levels set the stage for
record breaking rainfall and river levels that caused the
deaths of 31 people. Rainfall amounts ranged from 15 to 22
inches in Bexar, Kendall, Comal, and Hays counties, with
some reports as high as 31 inches. Damage and destructionhome of Richard and Angie Navarro floats through the town of
ro as floodwaters of the Guadalupe River rise on Oct. 19, 1998.
file photo.
to livestock and agriculture, roads and bridges, and both pub-
lic property and buildings approached $1 billion. Thousands
to tens of thousands of livestock were killed, nearly 3000
homes were destroyed, and another 8000 homes were dam-
aged. Nearly 1000 mobile homes were destroyed, and
another 3000 were damaged. Besides the 31 deaths, many
hundreds of others were injured in what will surely remem-
bered as one of the greatest floods in Texas history.
1998 Weather Extremes
Lowest Temp.: Dalhart, Hartley Co., December 23 ....- 2* F
Stratford, Sherman Co., December 22..- 2 F
Highest Temp.: Boquillas Ranger Station, Brewster
County, June 4 ..................17"F
Red Bluff Dam, Reeves Co., June 22 ... 117F
24-hour Precip: San Marcos, Hays Co., October 17... 15.78"
Monthly Precip.: New Braunfels, Comal Co., October . 26.75"
Least Annual Precip.: Midland Int'l Airport, Midland Co.. 4.21"
Greatest Annual Precip.: Sam Rayburn Dam, Jasper
County .......................... 62.96"
Weather Summary - 1998
The main weather issues of 1996 were the drought condi-
tions across Texas, which affected everyone in different ways.
Farmers and ranchers were especially hit hard, being forced to
sell cattle and watch crops wither in the dry soil. Along with the
extremely dry conditions, anomalously warm temperatures,
especially in February, May, June and July broke many records
statewide and caused 1996 to be warmer than normal across
Texas.
The year began on a very dry note. January precipitation
was almost non-existent in the southern portion of the state,
and minimal elsewhere. Mean monthly temperatures were 1 to
2 degrees F above normal over most of Texas.
The beginning of February was very cold across most of
the state, but this was not characteristic of the remainder of the
month. After the first week, when snow and ice were reported
as far south as Waco, temperatures began and continued to
rise throughout the month; 80s, 90s and 100s were observed
over most of the Lone Star State near the latter part of Febru-
ary. In most places, mean monthly temperatures were greater
than 4F above normal, while all regions received less than
half of the normal monthly precipitation throughout the state.
The hot trend reversed during March and April as temper-
ature anomalies were as far below normal in March as they
had been above normal in February. Relatively no relief from
the dry conditions occurred during March as all regions in
Texas again received significantly below-normal precipitation.
April did provide above-normal precipitation for extreme West
and East Texas, but other locations were not as lucky. The Pan-
handle suffered most during April; Amarillo and Lubbock
received zero percent and 11 percent of their normal monthly
precipitation, respectively.
Extreme heat, even more anomalous than February,
returned to Texas during May. West Texas observed monthly
temperatures greater than 8 degrees F above normal. In other
regions of the state, except near the Texas coast, where the
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Ramos, Mary G. Texas Almanac, 2000-2001, book, 1999; Dallas, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth162509/m1/87/: accessed April 24, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.