Dry Conditions - High Fire Danger

Strong winds and low humidity have created a rare occurrence for this part of the country. A red flag warning has been issued due to the extreme danger of wildfire. I don't recall the last time we had a red flag warning.

From the NWS in Wilmington, Ohio...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN WILMINGTON HAS ISSUED A RED FLAG WARNING...WHICH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 9 PM EDT THIS EVENING.

VERY HIGH AND EXTREME FIRE DANGER IS PRESENT OVER THE OHIO VALLEY FOR ANOTHER DAY. A TIGHTENING SURFACE GRADIENT AHEAD OF A COLD FRONT IN THE MIDWEST WILL CREATE STRONGER WINDS TODAY...SIMILAR TO SATURDAY. THESE WINDS WILL LIKELY MIX THE ATMOSPHERE TO ABOUT 6000 FEET...WHERE VERY DRY AIR IS FOUND. COMBINED WITH THE RECEPTIVE FUELS...STRONG WINDS...AND POSSIBLE PERIOD OF LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITIES...A RED FLAG WARNING HAS BEEN ISSUED TODAY.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE EITHER OCCURRING NOW...OR WILL SHORTLY. A COMBINATION OF STRONG WINDS...LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AND WARM TEMPERATURES WILL CREATE EXPLOSIVE FIRE GROWTH POTENTIAL.

OUTDOOR BURNING IS DISCOURAGED AND POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS AT THIS TIME. EQUIPMENT THAT MAY EMIT SPARKS OR GET VERY HOT SHOULD NOT BE OPERATED NEAR DRY GRASSES OR UNDERSTORY LITTER TODAY.

Summertime is Here!

Okay, so maybe it's not summertime yet. Thankfully, the humidity isn't present which made it sure feel nice today. Today's high reached 84F (29C). If you click on the image at the right, you'll see that the warm weather is covering just about the entire eastern two-thirds of the nation. Even the morning lows were mild. This morning's low was 61F (16C) and once the sun rose, the temperatures quickly headed towards the mid 80s. Temperatures will remain in the 80s until Tuesday when rain and clouds will once again move into the area. Temperatures won't take that great of a tumble though. Daytime highs should be in the low to mid 70s.

Sleet, Snow, Cold... April?

Today felt much more like early March than late April. Low pressure has been hanging out over the great lakes pulling cold air into the area. The cold air, along with strong April sun, leads to instability showers during the daytime. Those showers included some sleet and snow flakes too. Total precipitation for today has been 0.24 inches.
If you're up early Wednesday morning you may get a glimpse of the International Space Station. It will be the brightest ever seen as it passes directly overhead around 5:30am EDT. The station will approach from the SSW and move to the ENE. It will have a magnitude of -3.7 which is quite bright.

Cloudy and Cool Day

It's been a cloudy and cool day with afternoon showers. We certainly did not get the "heavy" rain forecast by the NWS yesterday. Total rainfall today has been 0.14 inches. I'm sure the rain was heavier along the Ohio river, but it appeared on radar that the rain really began to dissipate as it moved northward. More rain is forecast for Monday, so maybe we will hit the one inch mark before this storm leaves the area on Tuesday. Still looking at a high temperature of 80 on Friday, April 24.

Warm Spring Day

Today was the warmest day this spring. Today's high temperature reached 75 degrees (24C). The last time the high was 75 or above was October 15, 2008. On that day, the high temperature reached 81 degrees (27C). It was a great spring day.
Tomorrow however, may turn out to be less suitable for outdoor activities. Rain will move in from the west. Up to 2 inches of rain could fall through Monday. So far, we've received 3.75 inches of rain this month. The greatest April rainfall I've measured since 2002 has been 6.11" in 2006. Will we top that this year? Time will tell.

"The Black Blizzard" April 14, 1935

On this date in 1935, the most notorious dust storm hit the Plains states. Known as "The Black Blizzard", huge clouds of dust stretched from the Plains of Texas north to the Dakotas. The fine dust was carried as far east as Washington, DC. The dust was created by a decade long drought and poor farming practices of the time period. The dry ground was picked up the strong winds and made airborne.
For more on the "Dust Bowl" days, visit this Wikipedia article.

Laurel, Indiana Funnel Cloud Photos!!

Finally, I've received pictures of the Sunday, April 5 storm over the northwest section of Franklin county near the town of Laurel. The photo you see at right with the church in the foreground was taken in the town of Laurel and is looking southwest towards the town of Beuna Vista.
The second picture was taken along US 52 near it's intersection with Indiana 229. The photographer was looking to the northwest towards the town of Laurel. We are seeing both sides of the storm from these two vantage points. I don't think the photos were taken near the same point in time though because the directions seem to be off.
After studying the pictures and comparing them to some photos in the NOAA Advanced Spotters' Field Guide, I think what we are seeing are either wall clouds or shelf clouds. I can't really tell from the photos so I'm just speculating. Here is a map of the area.

Anniversary of World Wind Speed Record

On this day, April 12, in 1934 the world wind speed record of 231mph (372kph) was set at the summit of Mt. Washington, New Hampshire. The building at right was the original weather office. Notice the chains that go over the top of the building and then anchor into the ground. That's so the building doesn't topple over! I was on the summit of Mt. Washington in June 2008. You can find more of my pictures on my web album.

Here's an article about the peak wind on Mt Washington from the Unionleader.com. 75 years later, peak feels 'Big Wind's' impact

Murfreesboro, Tennessee Tornado

An EF-3 tornado swept through Murfreesboro, Tennessee on Good Friday, April 10. The tornado killed a 9-month old baby and her mom. Here's more from WSMV-TV in Nashville, Tennessee.
Two people were killed and at least 42 were hurt as tornadoes struck Murfreesboro midday on Friday. Seven people had critical injuries, and at least 100 homes were destroyed, in addition to 150 more that were damaged, according to Rutherford County officials.
Rutherford County EMS Randy White confirmed that a 9-week-old girl and her mother, Kori Bryant, 30, died at the corner of Haynes Drive and Sulphur Springs Road. Her child, Olivia, was found in a car seat 200 yards from their house. Amy Jones, 32, was at work at State Farm Insurance when she heard that her house had been leveled. She was stunned when she got to the scene and saw that the 1,800-square-foot home with a garage was lifted completely off the foundation and dropped on her neighbor's home."My house is on top of someone else's house. It's surreal," Jones said.
A detailed storm assessment with aerial as well as ground photos by the NWS in Nashville can be found here.

Freeze Warning

A freeze warning has been issued for a large portion of the eastern US. Temperatures are forecast to drop into the upper teens across portions of Kansas and Missouri the the low 30's in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. Here at home, temperatures will likely drop into the mid and upper 20's Tuesday and Wednesday mornings. The areas shaded in light blue are under the warning. Here is a statement from the NWS in Indianapolis.

IN THE WAKE OF A DEPARTING LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM...UNSEASONABLY COLD AIR WILL BE DRAWN SOUTH FROM CANADA AND INTO CENTRAL INDIANA... RESULTING IN LOW TEMPERATURES FALLING INTO THE UPPER 20S TO AROUND 30 FOR SEVERAL HOURS ON MONDAY AND TUESDAY NIGHT. A WIDESPREAD FREEZE IS EXPECTED ON BOTH NIGHTS.
A FREEZE WARNING MEANS SUB-FREEZING TEMPERATURES ARE IMMINENT OR HIGHLY LIKELY. THESE CONDITIONS WILL KILL CROPS AND OTHER SENSITIVE VEGETATION.

Funnel Cloud over Laurel, Indiana?

Well, I've seen a photo of what people are calling the "tornado", but I'm not convinced that's what it was. The photo I've seen was snapped by a camera phone and many of you may have already seen the photo. It looks like it was taken from behind the Baptist church. You can clearly see the church in the background and the end of a house trailer in the foreground. It appears that the photographer was looking towards the southwest. That would coincide with the location of the tornado signature on WCPO radar.
I have a simple cellphone that just allows me to talk on the phone (imagine that), so I don't have the photo available to post, but a friend who has received the photo plans to get the photo to me. Once I have it I will post it here. If you have a photo of the storm clouds from the evening of April 5 in Laurel, Indiana, please email them to me. My address can be found in my blogger profile.
UPDATE, April 11, 2009: An individual from Lakeview left a comment about the storm. I've not been able to get a copy of the photo that I mention in this post or the previous post. If you have a photo, please email it to me.

Possible Tornado Near Laurel, Indiana

Was there a tornado in Franklin county? I'm not aware of any damage or actual funnel cloud sightings, but a tornado signature was present on radar this evening around 7pm. The NWS in Wilmington, Ohio issued a Tornado Warning for the county. I was watching WCPO 9 out of Cincinnati at the time and their meteorologists were talking about a storm just west of Batesville and moving northeast towards Brookville. Although the warning did not cover the northwest corner of Franklin county, the WCPO meteorologists believed that the strongest part of the storm was in the Laurel area. I'm three miles west of Laurel and there was very little wind and not significant drop in pressure. I don't believe there were any tornadoes in the area. I'll ask around tomorrow if there was any damage in the area and post tomorrow evening.

April 3, 1974: "Super Outbreak"

The most destructive tornado outbreak of the 20th century was the "Super Outbreak" of April 3-4, 1974. During a 16-hour period, 148 tornadoes hit 13 states, including Indiana. The path of destruction stretched 2,500 miles. More than 300 people died and more than 5,000 were injured. The most notable tornado in this group destroyed much of Xenia, Ohio. In Indiana, 21 tornadoes struck 39 counties, killing 47 people. For more information, click here.

Finally, some decent rain!

The storms and rain moved in quickly last night beginning around 6pm. There was a tornado watch issued by the NWS for the southern 1/3 of Franklin county, but that was canceled after the threat dissipated. However, a severe thunderstorm warning was issued for the county. I've not heard of any damage from the storm though. Overall, we received 0.80" of rain from the storm.

From the NWS in Indianapolis...

March 2009:

Warm, Dry, and Almost Snowless

March 2009 began on a very cold note but was then marked by a very dry and warm weather pattern that persisted through most of the month, before breaking late as temperatures fell below normal to close things out. It came very close to being the first March ever on record to not record any snow at all, but flurries on the 29^th put an end to that record run.

March 2009 was the 36th driest March on record in Indianapolis and was the driest since 2005. It was also the 15th warmest March on record.

The following is a summary of everything that was weather in Indianapolis during the month of March 2009.

TEMPERATURE

March 2009 finished with an average monthly temperature of 47.2 degrees. This was above normal by 5.5 degrees and is the 15th warmest March on record. It is also a sharp contrast to March of last year, which was significantly cooler, with an average temperature of 40.4 degrees.

A record high temperature was set on the 10^th of March, with a high of 74 degrees, which broke a very old record for the day. The previous record on the 11^th was a high of 72 degrees set way back in the year 1894 and tied in 1925.

There were many days that ended up significantly warmer or colder than normal. The most above normal day came on the 7^th, which was above normal by 27 degrees. The most below normal days were the 6^th and 7^th, both of which were 15 degrees below normal.

Overall, only 2 days during the month saw a high temperature fail to reach the freezing mark. An average March sees 5 days with sub-freezing high temperatures. There were 6 days with highs of 70 degrees or warmer, compared to a normal of 3.

The coldest temperature of the month was 13 degrees on the morning of the 3^rd and the warmest temperature of the month was 76 degrees on the 7^th.

PRECIPITATION
March of 2009 was notable for the lack of rainfall that fell on the Indianapolis area. The monthly total of 2.28 inches was below normal by 1.16 inches, and made this the 36th driest March on record, and the driest since March of 2005.

The month’s rainfall was largely created by heavy showers and thunderstorms on the 28^th which dropped a total of 1.16 inches on the Indianapolis International Airport. Outside of this heavy total, there were just a few smaller rain events, with 0.20 inches on the 18^th and 0.30 inches on the 10^th.

Despite the light rainfall at Indianapolis, it was not the case in other parts of Central Indiana. There was some significant river flooding during mid March on portions of the Tippecanoe and Wabash rivers in western portions of Central Indiana. This was a combination of snow melt and heavy rain that largely occurred across northern Indiana. Some heavier rain did fall across portions of Central Indiana, and Lafayette was actually slightly above normal for rainfall this month, with 3.03 inches recorded.

SNOWFALL

March is typically the last month in which significant snow falls on central Indiana during the season. A normal March would bring 3.1 inches to Indianapolis. This year made a serious challenge to an all time record. Since snowfall records began in Indianapolis in 1884, there has never been a March where no snow at all has fallen. This year, there was no snow at all until some flurries fell on the 29^th. This brought the monthly total to a Trace.

It made this March the 15^th on record to only record a Trace of snowfall for the monthly total. It was the first time since 2001 that this has happened. While the month did not pass completely snowless, no other month has made it to the 29^th of March without snowfall.

The seasonal snowfall total for the 2008-2009 snow season remains at 24.3 inches. This is slightly below the normal of 26.2 inches that falls through the end of March.

SEVERE WEATHER

A fairly significant severe weather outbreak occurred on the 8^th of March in Central Indiana. The most damaging portion of this event was an EF3 tornado which touched down in Lawrence County, west of Bedford near the town of Fayetteville. This tornado produced significant damage to several homes and farms. There were several other, weaker, EF0 tornadoes that day from the same parent thunderstorm. In addition to this tornado there were 80-90 mph winds in portions of Knox and Daviess counties, as well as winds of 60-70 mph in Tippecanoe, Clinton, and Howard counties, producing damage there as well.