2-6 August 2004

Water in the Earth System will return for Fall 2004 with new Water News and Investigations files starting during Preview Week, Monday, 30 August 2004. All the current online homepage products will continue to be available throughout the summer break period.

• "Dead Zone" forecast issued -- Scientists from NOAA and Louisiana have recently issued a forecast that the size of the "Dead Zone", or an area of oxygen-depleted water in the Gulf of Mexico off the Louisiana and Texas coasts should be approximately the same size as in previous years since 1990. [NOAA News]
• Monsoon death toll continues to rise -- Monsoonal rains across south Asia along with snowmelt from the Himalayas have claimed over 1300 lives so far this year. [USA Today]
• Martian rock found in Antarctica may reveal water on the Red Planet -- Scientists are examining a rock found on the ice in Antarctica that appears to have originated on Mars, hoping to find additional answers to questions concerning the existence of water at sometime during the history of our neighboring planet. [USA Today]
• Global and US Hazards/Climate Extremes-- A review and analysis of the global impacts of various weather-related events, including drought, floods and storms during the current month. [NCDC]
• Global Water News Watch -- Other water news sources can be obtained through the SAHRA Project at the University of Arizona [SAHRA Project]
• Earthweek -- Diary of the Planet [earthweek.com] Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader.

• 1-3 August 1989...Hurricane Chantal made landfall along the Upper Texas coast about sunrise on the 1^st. Chantal deluged parts of Galveston Island and southeastern Texas with 8 to 12 inches of rain. Unofficial totals ranged up to twenty inches. Winds gusted to 82 mph at Galveston, and reached 76 mph in the Houston area. Tides were 5 to 7 feet high. The hurricane claimed two lives, and caused 100 million dollars damage. The remains of Hurricane Chantal also deluged north central Texas with heavy rain. Up to 6.50 inches drenched Stephens County, and Wichita Falls reported 2.22 inches of rain in just one hour on the 2^nd. (The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data)
• 2-3 August 1922...A typhoon hit the China Coast at Swatow on the night of the 2^nd. The wind and the storm surge killed as many as 50,000 of the city's 65,000 residents. Barometric pressure at landfall had dropped to at least 932.3 millibars (27.53 inches). (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
• 2 August 1954...Severe thunderstorms produced golf ball size hail for thirty minutes in north central Kansas. One drift measured 200 feet long, seventy feet wide and three feet deep. (The Weather Channel)
• 3 August 1898...Philadelphia, PA had one of its worst thunderstorms ever when 5.84 inches fell in just 2 hours. The hydraulic pressure in the city sewers due to the force of the accumulated runoff caused overflows in toilets, basins and sinks to rise to second-floor levels in some cases. (Intellicast) (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
• 3 August 1970...Hurricane Celia made landfall near Port Aransas on the Texas coast, producing wind gusts to 161 mph at Corpus Christi, and estimated wind gusts of 180 mph at Arkansas Pass. Even at Del Rio, 250 miles inland, Celia produced wind gusts to 89 mph. The hurricane was the most destructive of record along the Texas coast causing 454 million dollars damage as 8950 homes were destroyed on the Coastal Bend. Celia also claimed eleven lives and injured 466 people. (David Ludlum) (The Weather Channel) (Intellicast)
• 3 August 1987...A severe thunderstorm moved across Cheyenne, WY during the midafternoon. The thunderstorm produced hailstones up to two inches in diameter causing more than 37 million dollars damage. (Storm Data) (The National Weather Summary)
• 3 August 1995...South Bend, IN received 4.83 inches of rain in 24 hours to set the city's greatest daily rainfall record. (Intellicast)
• 3-4 August 1978...The remnants of Tropical Storm Amelia produced up to 32 inches of rain on Schackelford County in Texas, an incredible amount of rain for a far-inland and non-mountainous area. A twenty-foot wall of water killed six during the evening of the 4^th in Albany, resulting in 89 percent of the city being covered by water. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
• 4(?) August 1609...A tempest struck the western Atlantic Ocean scattering small British convoy headed to Virginia. Two vessels sank; another, the Sea Venture was presumed lost. However, a ship made landfall on Bermuda, shipwrecking the crew. After a ten-month stay to build two small rescue boats, they sailed to Jamestown (Virginia) Colony. Incident accounts may have provided William Shakespeare with background material for The Tempest. (The Weather Doctor)
• 4 August 1666...A violent hurricane raked the island of Guadeloupe, destroying all boats along its coast, including a 17-ship fleet with 2000 troops. The island's batteries, with 6-foot thick walls, were destroyed and the 16-pounders (large cannons) were washed away. (The Weather Doctor) (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
• 4 August 1995...Thunderstorms generated 5 to 6 foot waves on Flathead Lake, a 26-mile long lake in northwest Montana. Some of the waves generated by a distant thunderstorm crashed ashore at Lakeside, damaging boats, sea walls and docks. At the time, calm conditions were reported at Lakeside. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
• 5 August 1843...A spectacular cloudburst at Chester Creek, near Philadelphia, PA turned the small creeks and streams entering the Delaware River into raging torrents. As much as sixteen inches of rain fell in just three hours at Concord, which still stands as the greatest amount of precipitation in a three hour span in the U.S. Flooding destroyed thirty-two county bridges, and caused nineteen deaths. Several small tornadoes are believed to have accompanied the torrential rains, one of which upset and sank more than thirty barges on the Schuylkill River. Fifteen inches of rain also fell at Newark, NJ. (David Ludlum) (Intellicast)
• 5 August 1983...One of many Western Plains thunderstorms dumped 2.89 inches of rain in 38 minutes at Denver, CO. (Intellicast)
• 5 August 1988...Floods ravaged parts of Sudan during August, the result of 8.27 inches of rain that fell in Khartoum in 13 hours on the 4^th and 5^th. The previous 24-hour record at Khartoum was 3.46 inches. More than one million people were made homeless. At least 96 died in Sudan's worst flooding sine 1946. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
• 5-7 August 1997...Although far to the southwest, Hurricane Guillermo generated surf to 12-foot heights along the beaches of southern California. In Newport Beach, lifeguards made almost 300 rescues on the 5^th and 6^th. Rip currents were responsible for one death and three injuries. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
• 6 August 1890...Thunderstorms left four inches of hail covering the ground in Adair County and Union County in Iowa. The hail drifted into six-foot mounds, and in some places remained on the ground for twenty-six days until the end of the month. (The Weather Channel)
• 6 August 1905...Princeton, IN received 10.50 inches of rain, which established a 24-hour maximum precipitation record for the Hoosier State. (NCDC)
• 5-6 August 1959...A bucket survey showed that thunderstorms dropped 16.70 inches of rain on parts of Decatur County, IA. The total was accepted as Iowa's 24-hour rainfall record. (The Weather Channel)
  Hurricane Dot crossed Kauai in the Hawaiian Islands producing sustained winds of 103 mph and gusts to 125 mph. Over 6 inches of rain fell there and over 9 inches on the island of Hawaii. The sugar cane crop on Kauai sustained $2.7 million in damages. (Intellicast)
• 6 August 1987...Afternoon thunderstorms deluged Milwaukee, WI, breaking all previous rainfall records for the city. Among the records: 1.10 inches in 5 minutes, 3.06 inches in 1 hour, 5.24 inches in 2 hours, 6.24 in 6 hours and 6.84 inches in 24 hours. Floodwaters were four feet deep at the Milwaukee County Stadium, and floodwaters filled the basement of the main terminal at the airport. Flooding caused 5.9 million dollars damage, and claimed the life of one person. (The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data)
• 7 August 1904...A flash flood near Pueblo, CO washed a train from the tracks killing 89 passengers. A bridge, weakened by the floodwaters sweeping through the valley below, gave way under the weight of the train dashing all but the sleeping cars into the torrent drowning the occupants. Rail service was frequently interrupted in the Rocky Mountain Region and southwestern U.S. that summer due to numerous heavy downpours, which washed out the railroad beds, delaying trains as much as five days. (David Ludlum) (The Weather Channel)
• 7 August 1922...A violent hailstorm struck a passenger train near Pinneo, CO. Sixty-mile per hour winds blew jagged chunks of ice into the train, breaking windows and injuring the passengers. The train was so severely damaged that another train had to pick up the passengers to take them on their way. (Flora, Hailstorms of the United States, 1956)
• 7 August 1984...El Paso, TX normally receives 1.21 inches of rain in August. They got that amount in forty-five minutes, with four more inches to boot, during a storm that left Downtown El Paso under five feet of water. (The Weather Channel)
• 7 August 1990...A thunderstorm moving through Nome, AK, the ninth thunderstorm of the year, more than in the previous 20 years combined. (Intellicast)
• 7-8 August 1995...Lockington Dam, OH recorded 10.75 inches of rain, establishing a 24-hour maximum precipitation record for the Buckeye State. (NCDC)
• 8 August 1881...A cloudburst and flash flood occurred at Central Springs, CO and Idaho Springs, CO. (David Ludlum)
• 8 August 1882...An August snowstorm was reported by a ship on Lake Michigan. A thick cloud reportedly burst on the decks covering them with snow and slush six inches deep. Snow showers were observed at shore points that day. (David Ludlum) (The Weather Channel)
• 8 August 1982...Scattered severe thunderstorms dropped up to three inches of rain over western Arizona. Mud and rock debris from the rain covered approximately 250 miles of highway. Water to depths of three feet were reported in Parker and the town was isolated for three days. A number of streets in Lake Havasu City were seriously damaged. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
• 8 August 1987...Thunderstorm rains in eastern Nebraska sent the Wahoo River and Ithica River above flood stage. Thunderstorm rains in western Iowa sent the Nishnabotna River over flood stage. Up to seven inches of rain deluged the Council Bluffs area Friday evening and Saturday morning. Thunderstorms produced 4.4 inches of rain in three hours Friday evening, along with golf ball size hail. (The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data)
• 8 August 1992...Parts of south central and southeastern Indiana were hit by three to thirteen inches of rain in six hours. Streams rose between 30 to 35 feet in northern Clark and southwest Lincoln Counties. Sixty-five miles of Conrail railroad tracks were washed out. One death was reported as a man was swept away as he attempted to wade across a flooded road east of Scottsburg. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
• 8 August 1993...Des Moines, IA experienced sporadic and catastrophic flooding during the spring and summer of 1993. This date marked the first day since 11 July that the city's tap water was considered safe to drink. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)

Return to WES Homepage

URL: WES/news.html

Prepared by AMS WES Central Staff and Edward J. Hopkins, Ph.D., email hopkins@meteor.wisc.edu
ã Copyright, 2004, The American Meteorological Society.