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SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
830 PM CDT SAT JUL 2 2005
LAZ027>033-041>045-051>055-TXZ180>182-201-215-216-032300-
ACADIA-ALLEN-AVOYELLES-BEAUREGARD-CALCASIEU-CAMERON-EVANGELINE-
HARDIN-IBERIA-JASPER-JEFFERSON-JEFFERSON DAVIS-LAFAYETTE-
LOWER ST. MARTIN-NEWTON-ORANGE-RAPIDES-ST. LANDRY-ST. MARY-TYLER-
UPPER ST. MARTIN-VERMILION-VERNON-
INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...WOODVILLE...PORT ARTHUR...ORANGE...
NEWTON...KOUNTZE...JASPER...BEAUMONT...OBERLIN...ABBEVILLE...
VILLE PLATTE...OPELOUSAS...NEW IBERIA...MORGAN CITY...MARKSVILLE...
LEESVILLE...LAKE CHARLES...LAFAYETTE...JENNINGS...DERIDDER...
CROWLEY...CAMERON AND ALEXANDRIA
...SOME INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT THE CURRENT DRY SPELL AROUND THE REGION...
THE COMBINATION OF A BROAD RIDGE OF HIGH PRESSURE ALOFT AND A GENERAL LACK OF WEATHER MAKERS AT THE SURFACE HAS SPELLED A PROLONGED DRY PERIOD FOR SOUTHWEST AND CENTRAL LOUISIANA AS WELL AS
SOUTHEAST TEXAS. AFTER A WET FEBRUARY ACROSS THE REGION...RAINFALL BECAME SOMEWHAT SCARCE DURING THE MONTH OF MARCH. THEN AS THE SPRING WORE ON...RAINFALL DEFICITS CONTINUED TO INCREASE AS THE HIGH BECAME
FAIRLY ENTRENCHED OVER THE WESTERN GULF REGION...SUPPRESSING SHOWER AND THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT FOR ALL BUT VERY BRIEF PERIODS OF TIME.
RAINFALL TOTALS FOR THE FOUR-MONTH PERIOD BEGINNING MARCH 1ST AND ENDING JUNE 30TH GENERALLY RAN FROM SEVEN TO ALMOST TEN INCHES. THESE FIGURES RANGED FROM AROUND NINE INCHES TO ALMOST FOURTEEN INCHES BELOW THE THIRTY-YEAR NORMALS. WHILE NONE OF THESE INDIVIDUAL MONTHS APPROACHED RECORD-DRY TOTALS...THE COMBINATION OF THE FOUR CONSECUTIVE MONTHS DID APPROACH HISTORICAL VALUES.
THE DRIEST LOCATION AROUND THE REGION WAS LAFAYETTE...WHOSE TOTAL OF 6.95 INCHES FOR THE FOUR-MONTH PERIOD WAS A WHOPPING 13.65 INCHES BELOW NORMAL. THE PERIOD OF MARCH TO JUNE 2005 WAS ALSO NEARLY THE DRIEST SUCH PERIOD ON RECORD...UNOFFICIALLY BECOMING THE 2ND DRIEST IN STATION HISTORY (THE DRIEST BEING 6.75 INCHES IN 1954). MAY 2005 WAS THE 8TH DRIEST MAY EVER IN LAFAYETTE...WITH A TOTAL RAINFALL OF
ONLY 1.11 INCHES.
BEAUMONT/PORT ARTHUR WAS THE NEXT DRIEST LOCATION...WITH A TOTAL OF 8.36 INCHES OF RAIN. THIS TOTAL WAS 11.64 INCHES BELOW NORMAL...AND ALSO UNOFFICIALLY PRODUCED THE 7TH DRIEST MARCH-TO-JUNE IN STATION HISTORY. APRIL 2005 SAW A TOTAL OF ONLY 0.88 INCHES OF RAIN FALL... WHICH WAS STILL ONLY THE 9TH DRIEST ON RECORD ACROSS EXTREME SOUTHEAST TEXAS.
ALEXANDRIA REPORTED A FOUR-MONTH RAINFALL TOTAL OF 9.33 INCHES... WHICH WAS 11.62 INCHES BELOW NORMAL. THIS UNOFFICIALLY TIED FOR THE 2ND DRIEST SUCH PERIOD ON RECORD (THE DRIEST WAS 1963 WHEN ONLY 8.09 INCHES OF RAIN FELL). THERE WERE A PAIR OF MONTHS HERE WHICH WERE TOP TEN DRY MONTHS...MAY (1.17 INCHES WHICH WAS 4TH DRIEST) AND JUNE (1.26 INCHES WHICH WAS 9TH DRIEST).
THE TOTAL RAINFALL IN LAKE CHARLES FOR THE PERIOD (9.51 INCHES) WAS THE MOST REPORTED ACROSS THE REGION. IT WAS ALSO 9.80 INCHES BELOW NORMAL...FINISHING IN 9TH UNOFFICIALLY FOR LOWEST MARCH-TO-JUNE TOTAL ALL TIME. HOWEVER...NO INDIVIDUAL MONTHS IN THE LAKE CITY WERE
DRY ENOUGH TO TOUCH HISTORICAL DRY LISTS.
OF THE REPORTING STATIONS WITHIN THE NWS LAKE CHARLES FORECAST AREA...NEW IBERIA CAME THE CLOSEST TO NORMAL FOR THE SPRING. THE RAINFALL TOTAL OF 9.50 INCHES WAS 9.08 INCHES BELOW NORMAL. BUT THIS WAS STILL GOOD ENOUGH TO UNOFFICIALLY FINISH AS THE 4TH DRIEST SUCH
PERIOD ON RECORD. APRIL (1.46 INCHES) WAS THE 10TH DRIEST IN STATION HISTORY.
ALTHOUGH LUFKIN DOES NOT FALL WITHIN OUR FORECAST AREA...THE NUMBERS FOR THIS STATION WERE COMPUTED DUE TO ITS CLOSE PROXIMITY TO OUR COUNTIES WHICH ARE LOCATED IN THE LAKES REGION OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS.
THE FOUR-MONTH TOTAL HERE WAS A MERE 7.27 INCHES...BUT IRONICALLY WAS THE CLOSEST TO NORMAL AROUND THE REGION (8.86 INCHES BELOW NORMAL). LIKE LAFAYETTE AND ALEXANDRIA...THIS TOTAL WAS 2ND DRIEST
ON RECORD UNOFFICIALLY (6.57 INCHES IN 1998 WAS THE LOWEST). APRIL (1.10 INCHES) WOUND UP THE 6TH DRIEST ON RECORD WHILE JUNE (0.85 INCHES) FINISHED AS THE 7TH DRIEST EVER (AND THE DRIEST INDIVIDUAL MONTH OF ANY STATION IN THIS REPORT). ANOTHER INTERESTING FACT
FROM LUFKIN IS THAT THE MARCH TOTAL (3.52 INCHES) WAS THE CLOSEST OF ANY INDIVIDUAL MONTH TO BEING WETTER THAN NORMAL (ONLY 0.01 INCH BELOW NORMAL).
BELOW IS A TABLE OF INDIVIDUAL MONTHLY DATA (TOTAL/DEPARTURE FROM NORMAL IN INCHES) FOR EACH STATION...
BEAUMONT/PORT ARTHUR LAKE CHARLES LAFAYETTE
MAR 2.96/-0.79 MAR 2.99/-0.55 MAR 1.33/-3.18
APR 0.88/-2.96 APR 1.16/-2.48 APR 1.60/-3.12
MAY 2.69/-3.14 MAY 3.73/-2.33 MAY 1.11/-4.20
JUN 1.83/-4.75 JUN 1.63/-4.44 JUN 2.91/-3.15
NEW IBERIA ALEXANDRIA LUFKIN
MAR 2.13/-2.03 MAR 4.06/-1.72 MAR 3.52/-0.01
APR 1.46/-2.44 APR 2.84/-2.10 APR 1.10/-2.03
MAY 2.44/-2.26 MAY 1.17/-4.18 MAY 1.80/-3.49
JUN 3.47/-2.35 JUN 1.26/-3.62 JUN 0.85/-3.33
ODDLY ENOUGH...TEMPERATURES DURING THIS FOUR MONTH PERIOD WERE NOT ALWAYS OVERLY WARM AS MIGHT BE EXPECTED DURING A DROUGHT. IN FACT...MARCH AND APRIL WERE ACTUALLY ABOUT A DEGREE COOLER THAN NORMAL ACROSS THE AREA. HOWEVER MAY AND JUNE MADE UP FOR THE COOL START WITH MOST LOCATIONS BEING ONE TO TWO DEGREES WARMER THAN NORMAL.
(NOTE: ALL DATA IS UNOFFICIAL. THANKS TO NWS SHREVEPORT FOR LUFKIN DATA.)
$$
LGE