June brings historic winds and uneven drought relief

By Gary McManus, OCS Mesonet

June’s severe weather story wasn’t about tornadoes. It was about straight-line winds.

A powerful derecho and several other intense storm systems combined to produce six of the Oklahoma Mesonet’s top 50 all-time wind gusts in a single month — the most of any month since the network began in January 1994. Three of those gusts topped 100 mph.

June also delivered a significant rainfall rebound, finishing as the 16th-wettest June on record since 1895. That rain cut statewide drought coverage nearly in half, from 81 percent to 53 percent. But the relief wasn’t even. Western and Panhandle Oklahoma remained the hardest hit, even as the eastern two-thirds of the state saw real improvement.

Straight-line winds dominate the month

The most widespread damage came June 21-22, when a long-lived derecho tore across Oklahoma from northwest to southeast. Two gusts at Hinton hit 102 mph and 101 mph. The Mesonet recorded 54 severe gusts of at least 58 mph during the event, including 20 gusts above 70 mph and eight above 80 mph.

The storm damaged trees, power lines, homes and farm buildings, knocked out power to tens of thousands of customers, and contributed to a BNSF train derailment near Woodward. The damage path stretched from the Kansas High Plains to southwestern Arkansas.

The derecho wasn’t the only source of extreme wind. A June 25 storm in the Panhandle produced a 101 mph gust at Boise City. Eva recorded 96 mph on June 13, and Breckinridge matched that on June 26. All four gusts rank among the Mesonet’s top 25 strongest ever recorded. The two Hinton gusts rank 10th and 12th all-time; Boise City ranks 11th.

For comparison, the all-time record remains the 151 mph gust recorded at El Reno during the EF5 tornado of May 24, 2011.

Rain brings relief, but not everywhere

Statewide, June’s average rainfall came in at 6.68 inches — 2.42 inches above normal. Idabel led the state with 16.01 inches; Goodwell saw just 1.40 inches. Sixty-two of the Mesonet’s 120 sites recorded at least 6 inches, and 19 of those topped 10 inches.

Not every area shared in the abundance. A pocket of deficit stretched from west-central into southwestern Oklahoma, generally running a half-inch to an inch below normal.

The rain drove meaningful drought relief across the eastern two-thirds of the state. Statewide drought coverage fell from 81 percent on May 26 to 53 percent by June 23, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. Severe-to-exceptional drought dropped from 47 percent to 42 percent. But conditions worsened in spots — exceptional drought actually grew from 4 percent to 7 percent of the state, concentrated in west-central Oklahoma and the Panhandle.

June by the numbers

• Statewide average temperature: 79.1°F, 1.8°F above normal (27th-warmest June on record)
• Temperature extremes: 107°F high at Hollis (June 17); 51°F low at Eva and Kenton (June 12)
• Highest heat index: 113°F at Cherokee and Fairview (June 8)
• 100-degree readings: 95 recorded across Mesonet sites
• 100-degree heat index readings: 1,340, including 334 at or above 105°F
• Statewide average rainfall: 6.68 inches, 2.42 inches above normal (16th-wettest June on record)
• Rainfall extremes: 16.01 inches at Idabel; 1.40 inches at Goodwell
• 78 Mesonet sites recorded 5+ inches of rain, including 19 sites above 10 inches

July outlook: more heat, drought lingers in the west

The Climate Prediction Center’s July outlook favors above-normal temperatures statewide, with rainfall odds essentially split between above-, below- and near-normal. That leaves drought recovery uncertain heading into peak summer.

Drought is expected to persist across much of western Oklahoma, including the Panhandle, where conditions were worst at the end of June. In the east, where June’s rain brought widespread improvement, forecasters see little additional drought concern.