DROUGHT INFORMATION STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX 320 PM CDT MON MAR 9 2009 ...DROUGHT INFORMATION STATEMENT... ...DROUGHT CONDITIONS WORSEN OVER SOUTHEAST TEXAS... ...KEEP THE FAITH...RAIN POSSIBLE TOWARD THE END OF THE WEEK... SYNOPSIS... A PERSISTENT RIDGE OVER SOUTHEAST TEXAS HAS SHUNTED STORM SYSTEMS TO THE NORTH AND WEST OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS. THE LAST SIGNIFICANT RAIN TO AFFECT THIS AREA OCCURRED DURING HURRICANE IKE (MID SEPTEMBER). A SWATH OF LIGHT RAIN MOVED THROUGH THE AREA AROUND VALENTINES DAY BUT THE LAST THREE WEEKS HAVE BEEN VERY DRY. BELOW IS A TABLE WITH RAINFALL AND RAINFALL DEFICITS FOR A FEW SITES ACROSS SOUTHEAST TEXAS: HOUSTON INTERCONTINENTAL AIRPORT MONTH RAIN DEP SEP 15 0.00 -2.40 OCT 8.67 +4.17 NOV 2.92 -1.27 DEC 1.68 -2.01 JAN 0.49 -3.19 FEB 1.52 -1.46 MAR 07 TRACE -0.74 TOTAL 15.28 -6.90 SINCE JAN 01 2.01 -5.37 HOUSTON HOBBY AIRPORT MONTH RAIN DEP SEP 15 0.00 -2.88 OCT 2.62 -2.64 NOV 4.97 +0.43 DEC 0.86 -2.92 JAN 0.37 -3.88 FEB 1.18 -1.83 MAR 07 0.00 -0.70 TOTAL 10.00 -14.42 SINCE JAN 01 1.55 -6.41 COLLEGE STATION MONTH RAIN DEP SEP 15 0.00 -2.16 OCT 1.73 -2.49 NOV 1.35 -1.83 DEC 0.80 -2.43 JAN 0.70 -2.62 FEB 0.68 -1.70 MAR 07 0.00 -0.63 TOTAL 5.26 -13.86 SINCE JAN 01 1.38 -4.95 LAKE JACKSON/ANGLETON MONTH RAIN DEP SEP 15 0.00 -2.40 OCT 2.06 -2.70 NOV 4.44 -0.53 DEC 0.58 -4.18 JAN 0.25 -4.51 FEB 0.43 -4.33 MAR 07 0.00 -0.72 TOTAL 7.74 -19.37 HERE ARE SOME RAINFALL TOTALS FROM OTHER COMMUNITIES ACROSS SOUTHEAST TEXAS: COMMUNITIES NOV DEC JAN FEB TOTALS ANAHUAC 3.03 2.27 0.37 0.60 6.27 BELLVILLE 4.60 0.95 0.51 0.58 6.64 BRENHAM 4.96 1.29 0.79 1.20 8.54 CALDWELL 0.56 NA 0.63 NA NA COLUMBUS 2.25 0.71 0.52 0.21 3.69 CROCKETT 3.04 1.02 1.39 1.71 7.16 DANEVANG 5.73 0.56 0.16 0.69 7.14 EL CAMPO NA NA 0.19 0.80 NA FREEPORT 3.26 0.93 0.13 0.66 4.98 HOU HEIGHTS 3.91 1.55 0.39 1.51 7.36 HOU PORT 4.00 1.30 1.07 1.84 8.21 HOU WESTBURY 3.64 1.82 0.41 1.65 7.52 MADISONVILLE 2.20 3.87 1.29 1.04 8.40 MATAGORDA 2.99 0.37 0.02 0.14 3.52 RICHMOND 3.46 1.07 0.44 0.97 5.94 WASHINGTON 2.54 0.82 0.83 0.61 4.80 WEST COLUMBIA NA NA 0.37 0.73 NA WHARTON 3.80 0.71 0.23 1.24 5.98 AS OF MARCH 3 2009...EXCEPTIONAL DROUGHT CONDITIONS WERE AFFECTING JACKSON COUNTY. SINCE JANUARY 1 2009...EDNA HAS ONLY RECEIVED 0.23 INCHES OF RAIN. EXTREME DROUGHT CONDITIONS WERE AFFECTING PARTS OF MATAGORDA...WHARTON...COLORADO...WASHINGTON AND BURLESON COUNTIES. SEVERE DROUGHT CONDITIONS WERE IMPACTING PARTS OF AUSTIN...BRAZOS... BRAZORIA...FORT BEND...GRIMES AND WALLER COUNTIES. MODERATE DROUGHT CONDITIONS WERE AFFECTING PARTS OF CHAMBERS...GALVESTON...HARRIS... HOUSTON... MADISON...MONTGOMERY... POLK...SAN JACINTO...TRINITY AND WALKER COUNTIES. LIBERTY COUNTY HAS FARED THE BEST AND IS CLASSIFIED AS "ONLY" ABNORMALLY DRY. FOR FURTHER CLARIFICATION...SEE EITHER (ALL LINKS IN LOWER CASE) HTTP://WWW.DROUGHT.UNL.EDU/DM/DM_STATE.HTM?TX.S OR FOR THE ENTIRE COUNTRY SEE...HTTP://WWW.DROUGHT.UNL.EDU/DM/MONITOR.HTML. AGRICULTURAL IMPACTS... THE LATEST SOIL MOISTURE ANOMALY GRAPHIC FROM THE CLIMATE PREDICTION CENTER SHOWS BELOW NORMAL CONDITIONS OVER ALL OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS...WITH THE GREATEST ANOMALIES GENERALLY WEST OF INTERSTATE 45. THE MARCH 4TH TEXAS A & M TEXAS CROP AND WEATHER REPORT INDICATES THAT THE DROUGHT CONTINUED TO WORSEN. PLANTING OF ROW CROPS WERE DELAYED DUE TO A LACK OF MOISTURE. LIVESTOCK PRODUCERS CONTINUED TO PROVIDE SUPPLEMENTAL FEED TO CATTLE. HAY SUPPLIES ARE BEING DEPLETED AS PASTURES WERE NEARLY BARE. FOR MORE INFORMATION...SEE HTTP://AGNEWS.TAMU.EDU (ALL LOWER CASE). FIRE DANGER IMPACTS... A MODERATE TO HIGH FIRE DANGER EXISTS OVER SOUTHEAST TEXAS. ALTHOUGH HIGH RELATIVE HUMIDITY VALUES WILL ALLOW FOR SOME RECOVERY AT NIGHT...STRONG WINDS CONTINUE TO DRY OUT GROUND FUELS. THE THREAT FOR WILD FIRES CONTINUES TO INCREASE AND WILL REMAIN A THREAT UNLESS SOAKING RAINS RETURN TO THE REGION. AS OF MARCH 7TH...THE HIGHEST KEETCH-BYRAM DROUGHT INDICES (600 TO 700) WERE LOCATED OVER BURLESON...JACKSON...COLORADO AND BRAZORIA COUNTIES. FORT BEND...AUSTIN...BRAZOS...WHARTON...MADISON... HOUSTON...WALKER AND WASHINGTON COUNTIES HAVE INDICES BETWEEN 500 AND 600 (SEE THE LINK...ALL LOWER CASE HTTP://WEBGIS.TAMU.EDU/TFS/ KBDI_DAILY/ KBDICOUNTY.PNG). INDICES WILL LIKELY INCREASE THIS WEEK IF BELOW NORMAL RAINFALL CONTINUES. RESTRICTIONS/ACTIONS... ACCORDING TO THE TEXAS FOREST SERVICE WEB SITE ON MARCH 7 2009... (HTTP://TFSFRP.TAMU.EDU/WILDFIRES/DECBAN.PNG)...BURN BANS REMAIN IN EFFECT FOR THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES: AUSTIN...BRAZORIA...BRAZOS...CHAMBERS...COLORADO...GALVESTON... GRIMES...HARRIS...HOUSTON...LIBERTY...JACKSON...MADISON... MATAGORDA...POLK...SAN JACINTO...TRINITY...WALLER...WALKER AND WHARTON. ONLY MONTGOMERY AND FORT BEND COUNTIES DO NOT HAVE SOME TYPE OF OUTDOOR BURN BAN. RESIDENTS SHOULD REMAIN VIGILANT WHEN DOING ANY OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES WHICH INVOLVE FIRE OR SPARKS...BY MAKING SURE WATER IS QUICKLY AVAILABLE IF AN UNWANTED FIRE OR SMOLDERING BEGIN. FINALLY... MOTORISTS SHOULD NOT DISCARD LIGHTED CIGARETTES FROM THEIR VEHICLES. OUTLOOK... A COLD FRONT WILL CROSS SOUTHEAST TEXAS ON WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON. CONSIDERABLE COLDER AIR WILL SLIDE INTO THE REGION BEHIND THE FRONT. MEANWHILE...AN UPPER LEVEL TROUGH WILL DEVELOP OVER THE SOUTHWEST UNITED STATES. A SERIES OF UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCES EMBEDDED IN THE UPPER FLOW COUPLED WITH WARM MOIST AIR OVERRIDING COOLER SURFACE AIR WILL PRODUCE A GOOD CHANCE OF RAIN ON THURSDAY AND AGAIN FRIDAY. AT THIS TIME IT IS DIFFICULT TO PREDICT WHERE THE HEAVIEST RAIN WILL FALL OR THE MAGNITUDE OF THE RAIN BUT INITIAL INDICATIONS ARE THAT 1 TO 2 INCHES OF SOAKING RAINS WILL BE POSSIBLE...MAINLY NORTH OF I-10. AREAS SOUTH OF I-10 HAVE BEEN EXTREMELY DRY AND RAIN CHANCES LOOK A LITTLE LOWER SOUTH OF THE I-10 CORRIDOR BUT EVEN THESE AREAS SHOULD RECEIVE SOME MUCH NEEDED RAIN. THE NEXT DROUGHT INFORMATION STATEMENT IF NEEDED WILL BE BE ISSUED AROUND APRIL 8. $$