National Weather Service United States Department of Commerce

Powerful Storms to Impact the Western U.S. and Northern Plains

A strong, long-duration atmospheric river will bring excessive rainfall, flash flooding, and very strong winds to southwest Oregon and northwest California through Thursday. A High Risk (level 4 of 4) of Excessive Rainfall has been issued. A storm system over the northern Plains will produce locally heavy snow in North Dakota and northwestern Minnesota. Read More >

PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN ANGELO TX
755 PM CST TUE OCT 31 2000
  
...ABILENE RECORDS ITS 6TH WETTEST OCTOBER ON RECORD...
...ABOVE NORMAL AND MUCH NEEDED RAINFALL OCCURRED OVER WEST CENTRAL TEXAS 
   DURING OCTOBER...  

A SIGNIFICANT CHANGE TO A WETTER PATTERN DEVELOPED DURING OCTOBER...AND MANY
LOCATIONS RECEIVED SEVERAL INCHES OF RAIN FOR THE MONTH.   

AT ABILENE REGIONAL AIRPORT...THE TOTAL RAINFALL FOR OCTOBER WAS 7.01 
INCHES. THIS WAS 4.50 INCHES ABOVE THE MONTHLY NORMAL RAINFALL OF 2.51 
INCHES. THIS MARKED THE 6TH WETTEST OCTOBER ON RECORD FOR ABILENE. AT SAN 
ANGELO REGIONAL AIRPORT...THE TOTAL OCTOBER RAINFALL WAS 3.61 INCHES. THIS 
WAS 1.21 INCHES ABOVE THE MONTHLY NORMAL OF 2.40 INCHES.  

TEMPERATURES AVERAGED CLOSE TO NORMAL FOR THE MONTH AT BOTH ABILENE AND 
SAN ANGELO. AT ABILENE...THE MONTHLY AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR OCTOBER 
WAS 67.0 DEGREES. THIS WAS 0.6 DEGREE ABOVE THE MONTHLY NORMAL AVERAGE OF 
66.4 DEGREES. AT SAN ANGELO...THE OCTOBER MONTHLY AVERAGE TEMPERATURE WAS 
66.5 DEGREES. THIS WAS 0.3 DEGREE ABOVE THE NORMAL MONTHLY AVERAGE OF 66.2  
DEGREES.  


...OCTOBER 2000 WEATHER HIGHLIGHTS...

ABUNDANT RAINFALL OCCURRED OVER WEST CENTRAL TEXAS DURING OCTOBER...DUE TO A 
SIGNIFICANT CHANGE IN THE WEATHER PATTERN. NUMEROUS STORM SYSTEMS MOVED EAST
INTO THE SOUTHERN PLAINS AND WEST TEXAS...AND INTERACTED WITH A PERSISTENTLY 
MOIST AIRMASS OVER THE REGION. THIS RESULTED IN HEAVY RAINFALL OVER LARGE 
AREAS ON SEVERAL DAYS DURING THE MONTH. IN ADDITION TO ALLOWING AREA 
RESERVOIRS TO GAIN WATER...THE HEAVY RAIN ALSO CAUSED FLASH FLOODING.  

ON THE 17TH...MUCH OF THE ABILENE AREA RECEIVED 5 TO 7 INCHES OF RAINFALL. 
THIS CAUSED MAJOR STREET FLOODING...ALONG WITH THE FLOODING OF SEVERAL 
UNDERPASSES AND LOW WATER CROSSINGS.

WIDESPREAD HEAVY RAIN FELL FROM THE EVENING OF THE 23RD INTO THE EARLY 
MORNING HOURS OF THE 24TH. THE HEAVIEST AMOUNTS INCLUDED...

A BAND OF 3 TO 5 INCHES OVER THE NORTHERN AND WESTERN CONCHO VALLEY
2 TO 6 INCHES OVER MUCH OF CROCKETT COUNTY
2 TO 4 INCHES OVER PARTS OF THE HEARTLAND...NORTHWEST HILL 
COUNTRY...AND BIG COUNTRY

NUMEROUS ROADS WERE FLOODED IN THESE AREAS...ALONG WITH STREET FLOODING IN 
THE CITIES OF ABILENE AND SAN ANGELO. RIVER FLOODING OCCURRED ALONG THE 
LLANO RIVER AT MASON...THE SOUTH LLANO RIVER AT JUNCTION...THE SPRING CREEK 
NEAR TANKERSLEY...THE MIDDLE CONCHO RIVER ABOVE TANKERSLEY...AND THE NORTH 
CONCHO RIVER AT CARLSBAD. 

DURING THE LATE EVENING HOURS OF THE 28TH INTO THE EARLY MORNING HOURS OF 
29TH...2 TO 4 INCHES OF RAIN OVER BROWN COUNTY CAUSED SIGNIFICANT STREET 
FLOODING IN BROWNWOOD...ALONG WITH THE FLOODING OF SOME APARTMENTS. 

THE VAST MAJORITY OF STORMS WHICH OCCURRED DURING OCTOBER PRODUCED HEAVY 
RAIN...WITH VERY LITTLE IN THE WAY OF SEVERE WEATHER. ON THE EVENING OF THE 
28TH...A TORNADO WAS SIGHTED BY A STORM CHASER IN SOUTHERN SUTTON COUNTY...
ABOUT 23 MILES SOUTHEAST OF SONORA. NO DAMAGE WAS REPORTED FROM THIS 
TORNADO. THE STORMS WHICH PRODUCED THE FLASH-FLOODING RAINFALL IN ABILENE ON
THE 17TH ALSO PRODUCED NICKEL SIZED HAIL.      
  
WITH A HOT AIRMASS OVER THE REGION AT THE BEGINNING OF THE MONTH...A HIGH 
TEMPERATURE RECORD (99 DEGREES) WAS TIED IN ABILENE ON THE 2ND. A VERY SHARP
CHANGE IN TEMPERATURES OCCURRED EARLY IN THE MONTH WHEN A COUPLE OF STRONG 
COLD FRONTS MOVED SOUTH THROUGH WEST CENTRAL TEXAS. AN UNUSUALLY COOL 
AIRMASS RESIDED OVER WEST CENTRAL TEXAS AFTER A FRONTAL PASSAGE LATE ON THE 
5TH AND EARLY ON THE 6TH.  DURING THE FEW DAYS FOLLOWING THIS FRONTAL 
PASSAGE...TEMPERATURES AVERAGED 20 TO 25 DEGREES BELOW NORMAL...WITH DAYTIME
READINGS ONLY IN THE 40S AND 50S. RECORD LOW TEMPERATURES WERE TIED AT SAN 
ANGELO AND ABILENE ON THE 7TH.