October was a month dominated by hot and breezy weather, punctuated by teases of fronts, the first around Columbus Day. A persistent ridge of high pressure that typically settles across northern Mexico from mid to late summer held firm through October before being nudged into the Pacific near Baja California. This ridge kept significant fronts from moving very far south into Texas, while maintaining unseasonably warm temperatures and mainly dry conditions across Deep South Texas and the Rio Grande Valley the first two weeks of the month. The first teaser cold front moved across the region on Columbus Day and provided welcome rain across coastal sections of Willacy and Cameron counties, with nearly 2 inches (1.94 inches) falling at the Cameron County Airport, near Bayview. The area generally west of Highway 281 recorded little to no rainfall during those weeks and average temperatures continued above normal.
Improvements in Drought - by one category - appeared across the Rio Grande Plains/Ranchlands of Jim Hogg and Zapata County by the 2nd, courtesy of very heavy rains just before the end of September. These improvements would hold through October before worsening in November. Other slight improvements would appear near the Lower Valley Coast, courtesy of torrential rains on the 7th, 12th/13th, and 18th.
The areas generally west of Highway 281 recorded little or no rainfall. Most locations would finish among the top 10 driest. Unseasonably warm temperatures continued through the month of October across Deep South Texas. October 18th was the hottest October day all time across many locations across the Rio Grande Valley; high temperatures away from the coast soared above 100, including a blistering 108 at La Joya. Temperatures lowered into the upper 80s to lower 90s on the 19th, but quickly recovered back into the 90s in all areas until the 25th. Much cooler temperatures were felt on the 26th as the first significant cold front of the season made its way through Deep South Texas. The cold front allowed temperatures to drop to below to near normal, but did nothing to improve the drought on a large scale basis.