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PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN ANGELO TX
103 AM CST MON MAR 3 2003

...WEST CENTRAL TEXAS EXPERIENCED COOLER THAN NORMAL TEMPERATURES 
IN FEBRUARY...

TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR FEBRUARY WAS BELOW NORMAL FOR ABILENE BUT
ABOVE NORMAL FOR SAN ANGELO. THE ABOVE NORMAL PRECIPITATION FOR 
THE MONTH WAS MOST PRONOUNCED OVER WESTERN SECTIONS OF THE BIG 
COUNTRY...CONCHO VALLEY...AND NORTHERN EDWARDS PLATEAU.  

AT ABILENE REGIONAL AIRPORT...THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR FEBRUARY 
WAS 46.2 DEGREES. THIS WAS 2.4 DEGREES BELOW THE NORMAL AVERAGE  
TEMPERATURE OF 48.6 DEGREES. TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR FEBRUARY WAS
0.94 INCHES. THIS WAS 0.19 INCHES BELOW THE MONTHLY NORMAL OF 1.13
INCHES. ABILENE RECEIVED 1.1 INCHES OF SNOWFALL IN FEBRUARY. 

AT SAN ANGELO REGIONAL AIRPORT...THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR 
FEBRUARY WAS 47.6 DEGREES. THIS WAS 2.1 DEGREES BELOW THE NORMAL
AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 49.7 DEGREES. TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR 
FEBRUARY WAS 1.57 INCHES. THIS WAS 0.39 INCHES ABOVE THE 
MONTHLY NORMAL OF 1.18 INCHES. SAN ANGELO RECORDED A TRACE OF 
SNOWFALL IN FEBRUARY.


FEBRUARY 2003 WEATHER HIGHLIGHTS...

PATCHY LIGHT RAIN OCCURRED ACROSS MUCH OF WEST CENTRAL
TEXAS FROM THE EVENING OF THE 5TH INTO THE EARLY MORNING 
HOURS OF THE 6TH. RAINFALL AMOUNTS WERE MOSTLY LESS THAN
TWO TENTHS OF AN INCH. 

COLD AIR SETTLED INTO THE REGION ON THE 7TH. AN UPPER
LEVEL DISTURBANCE BROUGHT SCATTERED SNOWSHOWERS TO PARTS 
OF WEST CENTRAL TEXAS...GENERALLY SOUTHEAST OF A LINE FROM 
MERTZON TO SAN ANGELO TO ANSON. THIS OCCURRED FROM THE LATE 
EVENING HOURS OF THE 7TH INTO THE EARLY MORNING HOURS OF
THE 8TH. THE SNOW WAS MIXED WITH SLEET AT TIMES. MINOR 
ACCUMULATIONS (GENERALLY LESS THAN ONE INCH) OCCURRED IN 
PARTS OF THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN SECTIONS OF THE REGION. 
IN JUNCTION...NUMEROUS TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS OCCURRED...DUE TO 
SLICK ROADS.

WARMER AIR...ALONG WITH MOISTURE FROM THE GULF OF MEXICO...
MOVED INTO WEST CENTRAL TEXAS BY THE MIDDLE OF THE MONTH. 
AN UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE BROUGHT NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND 
SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS TO THE SOUTHEAST HALF OF THE REGION 
DURING THE LATE NIGHT AND EARLY MORNING HOURS OF THE 13TH 
AND 14TH. THE SHOWERS AND STORMS OCCURRED SOUTH OF A LINE 
FROM BIG LAKE TO COLEMAN TO CROSS PLAINS. MANY LOCATIONS 
RECEIVED RAINFALL AMOUNTS RANGING FROM ONE QUARTER TO THREE 
QUARTERS OF AN INCH...AND A FEW LOCATIONS RECEIVED AROUND 
ONE INCH.   

ON THE 20TH AND 21ST...AN UPPER LEVEL STORM SYSTEM BROUGHT 
THE FIRST WIDESPREAD SIGNIFICANT RAIN EVENT OF THE YEAR TO 
WEST CENTRAL TEXAS. SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS OCCURRED 
THROUGHOUT WEST CENTRAL TEXAS...AND WERE MOST NUMEROUS OVER 
CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN SECTIONS OF THE REGION. THE STORM 
SYSTEM TRACKED EASTWARD ACROSS NORTHERN MEXICO AND SOUTH-
CENTRAL TEXAS. RAINFALL TOTALS OF 1 TO 2  INCHES OCCURRED 
ACROSS MUCH OF WEST CENTRAL TEXAS. THE HEAVIEST RAINFALL 
FELL OVER COLEMAN COUNTY AND WEST OF A LINE FROM NOLAN TO 
ROBERT LEE TO MERTZON TO OZONA...WHERE AMOUNTS RANGED 
FROM 2.5 TO 5 INCHES. LESS THAN AN INCH OF RAIN FELL OVER 
THE NORTHERN BIG COUNTRY.

A SIGNIFICANT LATE SEASON WINTER WEATHER EVENT OCCURRED 
LATE IN FEBRUARY ACROSS TEXAS. TEMPERATURES WERE IN THE 
50S AND 60S ACROSS WEST CENTRAL TEXAS ON THE 23RD...BEFORE 
AN ARCTIC COLD FRONT SWEPT SOUTHWARD ACROSS THE AREA. 
AFTER THE FRONTAL PASSAGE...TEMPERATURES DROPPED RAPIDLY 
INTO THE 20S ACROSS MOST OF THE REGION BY THE MORNING OF 
THE 24TH. 

ON THE 24TH...TEMPERATURES CONTINUED TO SLOWLY FALL...AND 
WERE IN THE UPPER TEENS TO LOWER 20S BY THAT EVENING. BRISK 
NORTH WINDS OF 15 TO 25 MPH PRODUCED WIND CHILLS IN THE 
SINGLE DIGITS. AS AN UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE MOVED INTO 
TEXAS FROM THE WEST...AREAS OF MIXED PRECIPITATION OCCURRED. 
SNOW AND SLEET SHOWERS FELL OVER THE BIG COUNTRY...AND SOME 
WERE ACCOMPANIED BY LIGHTNING AND THUNDER. ONE TO TWO 
INCHES OF SNOW AND SLEET ACCUMULATED ACROSS THE BIG 
COUNTRY...INCLUDING THE ABILENE AREA. FARTHER TO THE 
SOUTH...A MIX OF FREEZING RAIN...FREEZING DRIZZLE...SLEET 
AND LIGHT SNOW OCCURRED. SLEET ACCUMULATED TO AROUND ONE-
HALF INCH IN THE HEARTLAND. ELSEWHERE THE SLEET AND ICE 
ACCUMULATIONS WERE MINOR. 

WITH TEMPERATURES WELL-BELOW FREEZING...TRAVEL WAS 
HAZARDOUS AS ROAD SURFACES BECAME ICY. THIS CAUSED NUMEROUS 
TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS IN THE BIG COUNTRY AND HEARTLAND.   

ADDITIONAL FREEZING DRIZZLE OCCURRED DURING THE OVERNIGHT 
AND EARLY MORNING HOURS OF THE 25TH AND 26TH. 

TEMPERATURES REMAINED IN THE 20S ON THE 25TH BEFORE 
MODERATING INTO THE 30S ON THE 26TH.

$$