Drought in California, May 1 to 31, 2016

Name: Drought in California, May 1 to 31, 2016
Start: 2016-05-01T00:00
End: 2016-05-31T23:59
Location: California

May 1 to 31, 2016 · NWS HNX · 11 events in 11 counties and zones

The California drought continues during the month of May, 2016. 55 inches of precipitation during the month.

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 11

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 HNX wrote it up.

The California drought continues during the month of May, 2016. Fresno received 0.29 inches of rainfall while Bakersfield only received 0.55 inches of precipitation during the month. Increased precipitation earlier in the year and slightly below normal temperatures we received this month did allow for lower evaporation rates and soil moisture to maintain higher levels. Some snow melt did occur contributing to improved water storage levels.

The U.S. Drought Monitor continued to report exceptional drought conditions across the entire Central California region. This extent of exceptional drought is extremely unusual for California. The general trend of below normal precipitation and above normal temperatures has continued this year.

There continues to be significant media coverage on the on-going drought conditions. These reports include discussion of significant re-allocation of water resources from the east to west side of the San Joaquin Valley, farmers forgoing planting of some crops, loss or reduction of ground water, wells drying up in several communities leaving them with no water, and an unprecedented increase in fire danger across the Southern Sierra Nevada and Tehachapi Mountains. Also, communities in Central California interior face state mandated reductions in municipal water use.

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 Hanford, CA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Apr 30, 2:20 PM PST, 9 hours 40 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Apr 30, 2:20 PM PST, 9 hours 40 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY - HANFORD CA
320 PM PDT SAT APR 30 2016

.SYNOPSIS...
CLEARING SKIES AND WARMER TEMPERATURES NEXT SEVERAL DAYS AS WEAK
HIGH PRESSURE MOVES OVER THE REGION. ANOTHER SYSTEM WILL MOVE INTO
THE REGION AGAIN INCREASING PRECIPITATION CHANCES BY THE END OF NEXT
WEEK.

&&

.DISCUSSION...
UPPER LOW PRESSURE CENTER IS MOVING SE INTO WESTERN AZ ATTM. NE
FLOW ACROSS THE REGION IS PROVIDING CLEAR SKIES AND BREEZY
CONDITIONS OVER PARTS OF THE INTERIOR CENTRAL CA REGION.

WINDS WILL CONTINUE TO DIE OFF THIS EVENING AND THE WIND ADV HAS
BEEN CANCELED FOR THE SJV. WEAK RIDGING OVERNIGHT BEFORE ANOTHER
UPPER LEVEL LOW CENTER WILL MOVE SSW FROM IDAHO INTO NRN CA ON
SUNDAY PROVIDING AN INCREASED CHANCE OF SHRA AND TSRA SUNDAY
AFTERNOON AND EVENING IN THE SIERRA. THE LOW WILL LIFT NORTH ON
MONDAY. A DIGGING TROUGH OF LOW PRESSURE WILL MOVE INTO THE EPAC
ON TUESDAY WITH A RIDGE OVER THE REGION TEMPERATURES WELL ABOVE
NORMAL ACROSS THE REGION. TEMPERATURES WILL GRADUALLY COOL OF TO
NEAR NORMAL BY THURSDAY AND THE TROUGH MOVES ONSHORE. WPC
MENTIONED A SLOWER TIMING IS EXPECTED EVEN THOUGH CURRENT GUIDANCE
IS TRYING TO BR9ING IT IN FASTER. WE HARE STILL KEEPING IT DRY ON
WED AND WED NIGHT BASED ON WPC INPUT AND PERSISTENCE IN FORECAST.

THURSDAY LOOKS TO BE AN ACTIVE WEATHER DAY AS COLD CORE LOW COMES
ACROSS THE REGION WITH STEEP LAPSE RATES AND LOW FREEZING LEVELS.
SPRING SUN WILL MORE THAN LIKELY KICK OFF THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY
ACROSS THE CENTRAL CA INTERIOR. STORMS COULD BE STRONG AS HAIL AND
GUSTY WINDS WILL BE THE MAJOR THREAT. THE UPPER LOW STALLS OUT
OVER THE SRN CA REGION AND WILL PROVIDE A CONTINUED CHANCE OF SHRA
AND TSRA ON FRIDAY AS WRAPAROUND MOISTURE WILL IMPACT MAINLY THE
SRN PORTION OF THE CWA.

THE UPPER LOW CENTER WILL SLOWLY MOVE EAST ON SAT WITH CONT
CHANCES OF SHRA ACROSS THE REGION. SEASONAL TEMPS AND NE FLOW
ALOFT WILL KEEP THE REGION MORE SPRING LIKE AS WE GO INTO NEXT
WEEKEND.

&&

.AVIATION...
BREEZY TO GUSTY CONDITIONS FOR THE SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY AND KERN
COUNTY MOUNTAINS AND DESERT THROUGH AROUND 03Z SUNDAY. IN THE SIERRA
NEVADA...AREAS OF MVFR CONDITIONS DUE TO LOW CLOUDS THROUGH AROUND
03Z SUNDAY. ALSO EXPECT MVFR WITH LOCAL IFR POSSIBLE AFTER 18Z
SUNDAY DUE TO SHOWERS AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS IN THE SIERRA
NEVADA...AS WELL AS THE KERN COUNTY MOUNTAIN AND DESERT AREAS.
OTHERWISE VFR CONDITIONS WILL PREVAIL OVER THE CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
INTERIOR DURING THE NEXT 24 HOURS.

&&

.AIR QUALITY ISSUES...
NONE.

&&

.CERTAINTY...

THE LEVEL OF CERTAINTY FOR DAYS 1 AND 2 IS HIGH.
THE LEVEL OF CERTAINTY FOR DAYS 3 THROUGH 7 IS MEDIUM.

CERTAINTY LEVELS INCLUDE LOW...MEDIUM...AND HIGH. PLEASE VISIT
WWW.WEATHER.GOV/HNX/CERTAINTY.PHP FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
AN/OR TO PROVIDE FEEDBACK.

&&

.HNX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
NONE.

&&

PUBLIC...JDB
AVN/FW...BSO
SYNOPSIS...WP

WEATHER.GOV/HANFORD