Drought in Missouri, July 2 to 31, 2010

Name: Drought in Missouri, July 2 to 31, 2010
Start: 2010-07-02T00:00
End: 2010-07-31T23:59
Location: Missouri

July 2 to 31, 2010 · NWS PAH · 8 events in 8 counties and zones

Moderate drought conditions developed over much of southeast Missouri after a very dry June. Poplar Bluff received only about one-half inch of rain in June.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 8 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

Tornadoes
Tropical storms and surge
Floods
Wind
Hail
Winter weather
Heat and drought
Cold
Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 8

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS PAH wrote it up.

Moderate drought conditions developed over much of southeast Missouri after a very dry June. Poplar Bluff received only about one-half inch of rain in June. Rainfall during July consisted of isolated to widely scattered showers and thunderstorms. Hot conditions increased evaporation rates and crop stress. Corn yields were expected to be cut by half where irrigation was not used. An upper level ridge of high pressure was firmly entrenched over the southeastern states early in the month. The high slowly migrated toward the southern Plains by mid-month and toward the southwestern U.S. by the 20th. It eventually re-established itself over the Southeast late in the month.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Paducah, KY wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 2, 12:00 AM CST, 0 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 2, 12:00 AM CST, 0 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY
100 AM CDT FRI JUL 2 2010

.DISCUSSION...

THE LATEST SURFACE ANALYSIS SHOWS HIGH CENTERED JUST EAST OF LAKE
MICH. LATEST IR SAT LOOP DEPICTS CLEAR SKIES OVER THE HEARTLAND.
SURFACE OBS INDICATE A LIGHT NORTHEAST WIND OVER THE FA.

EXPECT A NEAR CARBON COPY OF THURSDAY AGAIN TODAY...WITH THE ONLY
CHANGES FOR TODAY BEING A COUPLE DEGREES WARMER WITH A SLIGHT SHIFT
IN WIND DIRECTION. THE 500MB HIGH WILL MOVE DIRECTLY OVERHEAD TODAY
WHICH SHOULD SUPPRESS CLOUDS WITH SOME COMPRESSIONAL HEATING ADDED
TO THE MIX. WILL KEEP A GUST FOR THE AFTERNOON AGAIN AS FEW GUSTS
APPROACHED 20 KNOTS THURSDAY...ALBEIT FEW AND FAR BETWEEN. EXPECT
SIMILAR HUMIDITY AGAIN TODAY WITH SLIGHTLY LOWER READING AT HIGHER
ELEVATIONS MAINLY SEMO WHERE IT CAN TAP INTO THE DRIER AIR ALOFT A
BIT EASIER AS IT DID THURSDAY. AFTER TODAY THE SURFACE HIGH SINKS
SOUTHEAST OF THE HEARTLAND BRINGING A SOUTHERLY FLOW BACK OVER THE
AREA...USHERING IN HIGHER DEW POINTS ALONG WITH WARMING TEMPS. AGREE
WITH PREVIOUS DISC. THAT CU WILL RETURN THIS WEEKEND. NOW THE 12Z
THU OPERATIONAL ECMWF FORECAST SOUNDINGS DO NOT SUPPORT THE CU. IN
CONTRAST THE TIME HEIGHT VIEW OF THE MODEL DOES INDICATE SOME
MOISTURE MOVING THROUGH  BETWEEN 850 AND 700 MB. THE NAM IS THE MOST
AGGRESSIVE WITH THIS FEATURE WITH GFS A BIT DRIER BUT STILL
INDICATIVE OF SOME CLOUD COVER IN THE AFTERNOON SAT. THE MODELS ARE
SUGGESTING LESS CLOUDS ON SUNDAY BUT WILL NOT BUY INTO THAT JUST
YET.

AS BEFORE THE ECMWF KEEPS US DRY UNTIL LATE NEXT WEEK. IN CONTRAST
THE GFS CONTINUES TO A FRONT APPROACHING THE OHIO RIVER MONDAY AFTN.
I DO NOT LIKE TO IGNORE THE GFS WHEN IT LOCKS ONTO A SIGNAL LIKE
THIS FOR SEVERAL RUNS. IN CONTRAST THE ECMWF HAS BEEN PERSISTENT
WITH A DRY SCENARIO. WILL MAINTAIN CONSISTENCY WITH PREVIOUS
PRACTICE OF FOLLOWING THE ECMWF SCENARIO. HOWEVER IF THE GFS
CONTINUES TO HOLD ONTO THIS WILL LIKELY INTRO POPS AT LEAST NORTH OF
THE OHIO RIVER. THE ONLY OTHER POSSIBLE CHANGE WILL COME NEXT
THURSDAY INTO FRIDAY WHEN THE ECMWF IS FINALLY BRINGING A COLD FRONT
THROUGH.

AS FOR TEMPS WILL RAISE TODAYS HIGHS TO AT LEAST MATCH YESTERDAYS
HIGHS AND POSSIBLY ANOTHER DEGREE OR TWO. OTHERWISE WILL CONTINUE
WARMING TREND.

&&

.AVIATION...
VFR CONDITIONS WILL PERSIST WITH CLEAR SKIES AND NO VSBY
RESTRICTIONS. EXPECT A FEW GUSTS AGAIN THIS AFTERNOON WITH A MORE
EASTERLY COMPONENT.

&&

.PAH WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
KY...NONE.
MO...NONE.
IL...NONE.
IN...NONE.
&&

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

8 drought. Local standard time, as filed.

Drought, Butler

When: July 2, 12:00 AM CST to July 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Butler forecast zone
Reported by: Other Federal Agency
Coordinates: 36.716, -90.407 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Carter

When: July 2, 12:00 AM CST to July 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Carter forecast zone
Reported by: Other Federal Agency
Coordinates: 36.941, -90.962 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Mississippi

When: July 2, 12:00 AM CST to July 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Mississippi forecast zone
Reported by: Other Federal Agency
Coordinates: 36.828, -89.291 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, New Madrid

When: July 2, 12:00 AM CST to July 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: New Madrid forecast zone
Reported by: Other Federal Agency
Coordinates: 36.595, -89.652 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Ripley

When: July 2, 12:00 AM CST to July 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Ripley forecast zone
Reported by: Other Federal Agency
Coordinates: 36.653, -90.864 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Scott

When: July 2, 12:00 AM CST to July 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Scott forecast zone
Reported by: Other Federal Agency
Coordinates: 37.053, -89.568 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Stoddard

When: July 2, 12:00 AM CST to July 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Stoddard forecast zone
Reported by: Other Federal Agency
Coordinates: 36.856, -89.944 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Wayne

When: July 2, 12:00 AM CST to July 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Wayne forecast zone
Reported by: Other Federal Agency
Coordinates: 37.113, -90.461 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Drought: A drought reaching severe (D2) or worse on the US Drought Monitor, or with notable impacts.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Missouri in 2010 Every state in 2010 This day in weather history Warnings in Missouri, July 2010

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 243846, 243847, 243849, 243850, 243851, 243853, 243854, 243855.