Thursday brought a sight many in the Brazos Valley have been waiting months to see: rain.
The storms accompanying a front moving through the area were some of the first widespread rainmakers since summer began.
The amounts ranged from a quarter of an inch at Easterwood Airport to more than 2 inches in some areas in the western portion of Bryan and east of Texas 6 in College Station, according to state climatologist and Texas A&M atmospheric sciences professor John Nielsen-Gammon.
Thursday’s storms prompted a few flood advisories throughout the area as heavy rain caused water to pool on some roadways.
How the rain will affect the area’s drought conditions will vary based on where the rain fell, Nielsen-Gammon wrote in an email. Those that received less than half an inch of rain could see very little change in drought conditions, compared to the areas that saw more substantial rain.
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Brian Kyle, meteorologist in the Houston-Galveston National Weather Service office, said, “Everybody got a little bit of rain, some more than others, but I know it came down hard enough for some to fill some streets up for a little bit.”
Since June 1, Nielsen-Gammon reported Easterwood has received 1.33 inches of rain, including Thursday’s quarter-inch reading, through 6 p.m. That rain measurement is the second-lowest on record, he wrote, behind 1980 by 0.31 inches.
According to the NWS reports, Coulter Field in Bryan recorded nearly half an inch of rain.
“At this point, we would still need another 5 or 6 inches to get pulled out of drought conditions,” Nielsen-Gammon wrote.
He wrote that Easterwood has seen 57 triple-digit temperatures, which is 12 fewer than 2011 and one fewer than 1917, both of which were severe drought years.
Brazos County, part of Grimes County, most of Madison County, part of Robertson County and most of Burleson County are in extreme drought, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor released Thursday morning. A small portion of Brazos and Burleson counties, along with the eastern half of Washington County, are in exceptional drought, the highest level of drought. Most of Leon County is in severe drought, the third level of drought just below extreme drought.
Kyle said the drought has seen the ground become so dry and brittle that fires have been sparked by people tossing a cigarette butt out of their vehicle window.
“Every little bit of rain helps in the area; moistens up the ground and vegetation a little bit,” he said. “We’re still a good 8 inches below normal rainfall for the year so far, so it’s going to take a while to catch up. But you know, every little bit helps.”
It is better, he said, than the trend the area has seen of hot and dry weather.
Nielsen-Gammon and Kyle both noted the chance for rain through next week should help keep temperatures in the 90s; however, the humidity will increase.
There will be a 30% to 50% chance of rain through at least the middle of next week, Kyle said, thanks to fronts and a tropical wave that is expected to move into the western Gulf Coast over the weekend from the Yucatan Peninsula. He noted the tropical wave is not expected to bring more than rain to the area.
“It’s good to see the rain chances return to the forecast,” Kyle said. There were reports of wind damage in Caldwell where 1.35 inches of rain was recorded, so he encouraged anyone with outdoor plans to “just keep an eye to the sky.”
Thursday’s storms were able to develop as the front moved through the area because the area of high pressure over the area weakened, he said. The high pressure has been over the state for much of the summer, but its weakening allowed air to rise during the heat of the day and mix with available moisture in the atmosphere to cause the showers and thunderstorms.
The first front of the fall season typically arrives around mid-September, Kyle said. These fall fronts are usually what bring better rain chances and somewhat cooler temperatures.