Welcome Rainfall, Heat Relief to Spread Across Texas Midweek

By Brett Rathbun, AccuWeather.com Meteorologist

September 7,2015; 9:12PM,EDT

 

 

A prolonged stretch of dry and hot conditions will be erased as thunderstorms and more seasonable conditions move into Texas midweek.
According to AccuWeather Meteorologist Josh Searles, "The combination of enhanced moisture from the Gulf of Mexico and an advancing cold front will cause showers and thunderstorms to develop across parts of Texas by midweek."

South Central Extended Regional Weather Forecast

After a very wet spring across much of Texas, rain was little to be seen across much of the state during the summer.
The majority of Texas received 200 percent or more of their normal rainfall during from the beginning of March to the end of June. While the Texas Panhandle remained wet through the hot summer months of July and August, much of central and eastern Texas was quite dry.
Observed Rainfall Across Texas

City	Rainfall (Mar 1 to Jun 30)	Percent of Normal	Rainfall (Jul 1 to Aug 31)	Percent of Normal
Amarillo	16.36"	199	10.27"	179
Austin	23.04"	195	0.75"	18
Corpus Christi	28.44"	280	4.12"	72
Dallas	29.00"	190	1.38"	34
Houston	38.00"	214	3.55"	47
Lubbock	15.81"	201	4.21"	110
McAllen	16.51"	244	2.90"	93
Midland	9.59"	200	1.73"	47
San Antonio	25.50"	203	0.36"	7

According to AccuWeather Meteorologist Becky Elliott, "In Houston, nearly 200 percent of their normal precipitation was recorded in April and June and in May, it was nearly 300 percent of normal."
"Conditions dried out drastically, with Houston only receiving 16 percent of their normal rainfall in July," she added.
According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, nearly 91 percent of Texas was drought free into the beginning of June. Since then, only 58 percent of the state remains drought free, which is the western half and along the southeast coast. Parts of northeastern Texas are currently in a severe and extreme drought.
The lack of tropical systems tracking across the Gulf of Mexico due to El Niño has not helped in receiving summertime rainfall.

While thunderstorms this week will not end the redeveloped drought across eastern Texas, it will bring some relief.
Any thunderstorms that develop could produce locally heavy downpours, which could lead to localized areas of flash flooding and mudslides.
"This front will be packing plenty of moisture, so thunderstorms are likely from Wednesday through Friday," Elliott said. "These storms are more likely to produce heavy rainfall than anything severe."
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Coincidently, the heaviest storms are expected to track across the drought areas of eastern Texas.
Use AccuWeather Minutecast® to get a minute-by-minute precipitation forecast for your area.
A break from the summer heat will also occur across much of Texas into the weekend. While temperatures will not drop significantly, temperatures will lower to near-seasonable values.
As we transition into the fall and the winter seasons, an expected strong El Niño will provide the opportunity for plenty of rain to fall across Texas.