000
NOUS44 KEWX 281542
PNSEWX
TXZ171>173-183>194-202>209-217>225-228-281630-

PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AUSTIN/SAN ANTONIO, TX
930 AM CST FRI DEC 28 2007

...THE TOP TEN WEATHER STORIES OF 2007...
(EVENTS ARE LISTED CHRONOLOGICALLY.)

1. SAN MARCOS TORNADO OF JANUARY 13
AN UNUSUAL WINTER TORNADO DEVELOPED IN SAN MARCOS ON THE MORNING OF 
JANUARY 13 AS A COLD FRONT APPROACHED FROM THE NORTH.  SEVERE 
THUNDERSTORM WINDS ESTIMATED AT 70 TO 80 MPH FIRST STRUCK ABOUT 3 
MILES SOUTHWEST OF SAN MARCOS, JUST SOUTH OF THE POLICE 
HEADQUARTERS.  NEXT, A SMALL TORNADO TOUCHED DOWN NEAR THE POLICE 
HEADQUARTERS AND MOVED TOWARD THE NORTH.  AN OFFICER IN HIS VEHICLE 
AT 7:08 AM CST, ABOUT THE TIME THE TORNADO STRUCK, REPORTED THAT 
VERY HIGH WINDS AND HEAVY RAIN BEGAN BLOWING FROM NORTH TO SOUTH, 
THEN ABRUPTLY CHANGED DIRECTION AND BEGAN BLOWING FROM SOUTH TO 
NORTH, ALONG WITH PENNY-SIZED HAIL.  HIS CAR, PARTIALLY SHELTERED BY 
A BUILDING, WAS BADLY DAMAGED BY THE TORNADO DEBRIS.  IN ALL, 35 
VEHICLES AT THE POLICE BUILDING SUSTAINED DAMAGE, CONSISTING MAINLY 
OF DENTS AND GASHES IN CAR BODIES AS WELL AS BROKEN WINDOWS AND 
WINDSHIELDS.  A LARGE AREA OF BRICK WAS EJECTED FROM AN UPPER 
PORTION OF THE BUILDING'S NORTH WALL.  THE DAMAGE APPEARED TO END 
JUST NORTH OF THE BUILDING, THEN RE-APPEARED ABOUT 200 YARDS FURTHER 
TO THE NORTH.  THIS WAS THOUGHT TO BE A SECOND TOUCHDOWN OF THE SAME 
TORNADO.  AT THE SECOND LOCATION, A LARGE DUMPSTER WAS SPUN ALMOST 
360 DEGREES AND SEVERAL TRAILERS WERE SLAMMED INTO EACH OTHER. A 
SINGLE-WIDE TRAILER WAS TIPPED OVER ON ITS SIDE.  WINDOWS AND DOORS 
AT THE BUILDING WERE BROKEN, WITH SOME BLOWN INWARD AND SOME BLOWN 
OUTWARD.  THE TORNADO WAS RATED AN F1 ON THE FUJITA SCALE, AND AN 
EF1 ON THE NEW ENHANCED FUJITA SCALE.  THE TORNADO PATH WAS 
ESTIMATED TO BE 100 YARDS WIDE AND THREE-TENTHS OF A MILE LONG.  

2. ICE STORM OF JANUARY 15 TO 17
COLD AIR POURED INTO SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS ON THE MORNING OF JANUARY 
13 IN THE WAKE OF A STRONG COLD FRONT. TEMPERATURES CONTINUED TO 
COOL BEHIND THE FRONT FOR THE FOLLOWING TWO DAYS.  BY THE MORNING OF 
MONDAY, JANUARY 15, TEMPERATURES IN THE NORTHERN HILL COUNTRY HAD 
FALLEN TO NEAR FREEZING.  AT THE SAME TIME, AN UPPER LEVEL 
DISTURBANCE BEGAN TO APPROACH SOUTH TEXAS FROM THE SOUTHWEST.  LIGHT 
PRECIPITATION FROM THE UPPER LEVEL SYSTEM BEGAN FALLING THROUGH THE 
COLD AIR ON THE MORNING OF JANUARY 15, TURNING TO ICE OVER THE 
NORTHERN HILL COUNTRY COUNTIES FIRST.  BY MID DAY, ICE WAS BEING 
REPORTED NORTH OF A LINE FROM LLANO TO BURNET TO GEORGETOWN.  
FREEZING PRECIPITATION CONTINUED TO SPREAD OVER THE WEST AND 
SOUTHEAST SLOWLY THROUGH THE AFTERNOON.  BY EARLY EVENING, ICE WAS 
REPORTED IN ALL COUNTIES ALONG AND NORTH OF A LEAKEY TO BANDERA TO 
NEW BRAUNFELS TO LOCKHART TO LAGRANGE LINE.  BY SUNRISE ON JANUARY 
16, THE ICY CONDITIONS HAD SPREAD SOUTHWARD TO A DEL RIO TO 
BRACKETTVILLE TO UVALDE TO HONDO TO POTEET TO FLORESVILLE TO 
GONZALES LINE.  THIS INCLUDED THE METROPOLITAN AREAS OF AUSTIN AND 
SAN ANTONIO.  SPOTTY 1 TO 2 INCH SNOWFALLS WERE COMMON OVER THE HILL 
COUNTRY AND EDWARDS PLATEAU.  ICE COATINGS OF FREEZING RAIN AND 
DRIZZLE VARIED FROM ONE-HALF INCH TO THREE-QUARTERS OF AN INCH IN 
THICKNESS IN THE WINTER STORM AREA.  MANY SCHOOLS AND BUSINESSES IN 
THE AREA, AS WELL AS PUBLIC OFFICES, WERE ALREADY CLOSED ON JANUARY 
15 DUE TO THE MARTIN LUTHER KING HOLIDAY AND SIMPLY DID NOT RE-OPEN 
UNTIL WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 17, OR THURSDAY, JANUARY 18.  HUNDREDS OF 
ACCIDENTS WERE REPORTED ON INTERSTATE HIGHWAYS AS WELL AS CITY AND 
RURAL ROADS, CAUSING ADDITIONAL CLOSURES AND PROBLEMS.  AS THE ICE 
THICKENED ON JANUARY 16, WHOLE SECTIONS OF IH-35 WERE CLOSED IN 
SEVERAL LOCATIONS BETWEEN GEORGETOWN, AUSTIN, SAN MARCOS, AND SAN 
ANTONIO, AND PARTS OF IH-10 WERE CLOSED BOTH NORTH AND NORTHWEST OF 
SAN ANTONIO.  POWER OUTAGES ALSO BECAME A PROBLEM ACROSS MOST OF THE 
WINTER STORM AREA ON JANUARY 16 AND 17.  TENS OF THOUSANDS WERE LEFT 
WITHOUT POWER FOR SEVERAL HOURS.  OF GREAT INTEREST DURING THIS 
EVENT WAS THE FACT THAT THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO WAS PLAYING HOST TO 
THE ANNUAL CONFERENCE OF THE AMERICAN METEOROLOGICAL SOCIETY.  
THOUSANDS OF METEOROLOGISTS WERE CAUGHT IN DOWNTOWN SAN ANTONIO AS 
THE STORM STRUCK, BUT CONTINUED THEIR MEETINGS WITHOUT HALT.  THIS 
WAS EVEN MORE INTERESTING SINCE THE LAST TIME THIS CONFERENCE WAS 
HELD IN SAN ANTONIO WAS 25 YEARS EARLIER, IN 1982, AND THAT 
CONFERENCE WAS ALSO STRUCK WITH A WINTER STORM.

3.  COLD AND SNOWY EASTER WEEKEND OF APRIL 7 AND 8
IN THE WAKE OF A STRONG COLD FRONT DROPPING SOUTHWARD ACROSS TEXAS 
ON EASTER SUNDAY, APRIL 7, AFTERNOON TEMPERATURES FELL RAPIDLY INTO 
THE LOWER AND MID 30S.  THESE VALUES WERE 30 TO 35 DEGREES BELOW 
THOSE OF SATURDAY, APRIL 6.  LIGHT RAIN BEGAN TO FALL THROUGH THIS 
FRIGID AIR, CHANGING TO SLEET IN MANY LOCATIONS ALONG AND NORTH OF A 
LINE FROM DEL RIO TO SAN ANTONIO TO SAN MARCOS, AUSTIN AND 
GEORGETOWN, INCLUDING THE TEXAS HILL COUNTRY. LIGHT SNOW WAS 
OBSERVED IN LLANO AND BURNET COUNTIES AND EXTENDED EAST INTO PARTS 
OF WILLIAMSON AND TRAVIS COUNTIES. SOME AREAS RECEIVED MEASURABLE 
SNOW AMOUNTS, NOTABLY 10 MILES NORTHWEST OF LLANO AND OVER PARTS OF 
BURNET AND WILLIAMSON COUNTIES.  SNOW FLURRIES WERE OBSERVED IN THE 
AUSTIN AREA, AND AUSTIN BERGSTROM INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, REPORTED A 
TRACE OF SNOW. FURTHER TO THE SOUTH, MAINLY SOUTH OF HIGHWAY 90 NEAR 
DEL RIO TO SOUTH OF SAN ANTONIO AND SOUTHEAST OF IH-35, ONLY A COLD 
RAIN FELL.

4.  EAGLE PASS TORNADO OF APRIL 24
A SUPERCELL THUNDERSTORM FORMED IN THE MEXICAN MOUNTAINS WEST OF 
PIEDRAS NEGRAS, PRODUCING A VERY DAMAGING TORNADO IN PIEDRAS 
NEGRAS.  THE TORNADO DISSIPATED AS THE STORM MOVED EASTWARD, 
APPROACHING THE RIO GRANDE RIVER.  THE SUPERCELL CROSSED THE RIO 
GRANDE RIVER NEAR 7:00 PM CDT AND SHORTLY AFTERWARD STRUCK THE 
COMMUNITY OF ROSITA VALLEY WITH SEVERE OUTFLOW WINDS ESTIMATED AT 
BETWEEN 80 MPH AND 100 MPH.  THIS CAUSED DAMAGE TO SEVERAL HOUSES 
AND MOBILE HOMES. ROOFS WERE PARTIALLY LIFTED, EXTERIORS OF HOMES 
WERE DAMAGED, AND TREES WERE KNOCKED OVER.  HAIL AS LARGE AS 
GOLFBALLS ALSO STRUCK THE AREA, ALONG WITH HEAVY RAIN.  THE STORM 
THEN PRODUCED A TORNADO THAT TOUCHED DOWN APPROXIMATELY ONE-QUARTER 
MILE SOUTHWEST OF THE ROSITA VALLEY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL. IT DESTROYED 
SEVERAL HOMES AND MOBILE HOMES AS IT TRACKED TOWARD THE 
EAST-NORTHEAST IN THE DIRECTION OF THE SCHOOL. DAMAGE TO THE 
STRUCTURES WAS RATED AS EF-1 AND EF-2 ON THE NEW ENHANCED FUJITA 
DAMAGE SCALE. THE TORNADO CROSSED ROSITA VALLEY ROAD AND STRUCK THE 
WEST SIDE OF THE ROSITA VALLEY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL BUILDING AS WELL AS 
RETAIL BUILDINGS JUST NORTH OF THE SCHOOL. THE DAMAGE FROM THE 
CENTER OF THE SCHOOL NORTHEASTWARD WAS THE MOST SEVERE, ESTIMATED AS 
EF-3.  JUST BEYOND THE SCHOOL, THE TORNADO STRUCK AN AREA OF SINGLE 
FAMILY HOUSES.  MOST HOUSES WERE SWEPT OFF THEIR FOUNDATIONS AND 
MANY WERE COMPLETELY FLATTENED. THIS DAMAGE WAS AGAIN INDICATED AS 
EF-3.  IT SUGGESTED WIND SPEEDS APPROACHING 150 MPH, THE HIGHEST 
SPEEDS INDICATED IN THIS TORNADO.   THE TORNADO PATH WIDTH WAS 
APPROXIMATELY ONE-QUARTER MILE WITH A PATH LENGTH NEAR FOUR MILES.  
IT DESTROYED ONE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, ALONG WITH 59 MANUFACTURED HOMES 
AND 57 HOUSES.  MAJOR DAMAGE WAS REPORTED TO 21 MANUFACTURED HOMES 
AND 19 HOUSES WITH MINOR DAMAGE TO10 MANUFACTURED HOMES, 22 HOUSES, 
AND 9 APARTMENTS.  THERE WERE SEVEN DEATHS IN ROSITA VALLEY.  

5. THE DERECHOES OF APRIL 24/25
LATE ON THE EVENING OF APRIL 24, THUNDERSTORMS THAT HAD PRODUCED 
LARGE HAIL AT CRYSTAL CITY AND CARRIZO SPRINGS BEGAN TO CROSS INTO 
MEDINA AND BEXAR COUNTIES.  AS THEY SPREAD EASTWARD JUST BEFORE 
MIDNIGHT, THEY FORMED INTO A SERIES OF NORTH-TO-SOUTH-ORIENTED LINES 
THAT MOVED RAPIDLY EASTWARD, OFTEN REFERRED TO AS "DERECHOES".  JUST 
AFTER MIDNIGHT THESE LINES BEGAN TO PRODUCE DAMAGING WINDS WITH 
LITTLE OR NO HAIL.  THE AREA OF WIND DAMAGE BEGAN ALONG A LINE FROM 
BULVERDE TO JUST EAST OF SAN ANTONIO TO FLORESVILLE AND CONTINUED 
EASTWARD.  THE SUSTAINED WINDS FROM THE LINE WERE ESTIMATED TO BE 
BETWEEN 50 AND 60 MPH, WITH GUSTS AS HIGH AS 80 MPH.  THESE DAMAGING 
WINDS, ALSO REFERRED TO AS "DOWNBURST" WINDS, CONTINUED TO DAMAGE 
HOMES AND KNOCK OVER TREES AS THE LINES SPREAD EASTWARD INTO HAYS, 
GUADALUPE, CALDWELL, AND GONZALES COUNTIES BETWEEN 1 AM AND 2 AM 
CDT.  MULTIPLE STORM SURVEYS CONDUCTED BY THE NATIONAL WEATHER 
SERVICE ACROSS THESE COUNTIES INDICATED THAT GUSTS IN SOME PLACES 
MAY HAVE APPROACHED 100 MPH.  SHORTLY AFTER 3 AM CDT, THE STORMS 
MOVED THROUGH BASTROP AND FAYETTE COUNTIES, EXITING SOUTH CENTRAL 
TEXAS.

6. THE HEAVY RAINS AND FLOODING OF MAY THROUGH JULY AFTER A DRY 
JANUARY AND FEBRUARY, SPRING STORMS INCREASED DRAMATICALLY ACROSS 
SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS IN MARCH AND THEN DROPPED OFF IN APRIL. STORM 
ACTIVITY AGAIN INTENSIFIED IN MAY AND THIS TIME CONTINUED PAST JUNE 
INTO JULY. EXCEPT FOR A PART OF THE AREA EAST OF IH-35 AND SOUTH OF 
IH-10, NEARLY EVERY COUNTY RECEIVED 150 PERCENT OR GREATER OF ITS 
NORMAL RAINFALL IN BOTH MAY AND JUNE.  IN JULY EVERY COUNTY IN SOUTH 
CENTRAL TEXAS RECEIVED 300 PERCENT OF NORMAL JULY RAINFALL OR 
GREATER.  THE EFFECTS OF THE INCREASE IN FREQUENCY AND INTENSITY OF 
RAIN EVENTS BROUGHT AN INCREASE IN THE FLASH FLOOD EVENTS FROM NONE 
IN FEBRUARY TO BETWEEN 50 AND 60 IN EACH OF MARCH, MAY AND JUNE.  
FLASH FLOOD WARNINGS ZOOMED FROM NONE IN FEBRUARY TO WELL OVER 100 
IN EACH OF MARCH, MAY AND JUNE.  THE STORMS CONTINUED TO INCREASE AS 
JULY ARRIVED AND THE NUMBER OF BOTH FLASH FLOOD WARNINGS AND FLASH 
FLOOD EVENTS TRIPLED OVER THE JUNE VALUES.  THIS EXCESSIVE SPRING 
RAINFALL MADE THE JANUARY THROUGH JULY 2007 PERIOD ONE OF THE THREE 
WETTEST IN SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS HISTORY.  BY JULY, MANY SOUTH CENTRAL 
TEXAS LOCATIONS HAD ALREADY RECEIVED ENOUGH RAINFALL TO EQUAL OR 
EXCEEDED THEIR ANNUAL AVERAGE AMOUNTS.  THE EXTREME RAINFALL IN JUNE 
AND JULY WAS NOT CONFINED TO SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS, BUT STRETCHED 
ACROSS THE EASTERN TWO-THIRDS OF THE STATE.  IT IS ONE OF THE MOST 
EXTENSIVE FLOOD EVENTS IN STATE HISTORY, BOTH IN AERIAL EXTENT AND 
DURATION.  AT ONE POINT, THE CHIEF OF THE GOVERNOR'S DIVISION OF 
EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT NOTED THAT FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE 1957 EVERY 
MAJOR RIVER IN THE STATE WAS IN FLOOD.  THE TEXAS STATE 
CLIMATOLOGIST NOTED THAT FOR THE FIRST TIME IN OVER TEN YEARS RAIN 
DEFICITS HAD BEEN ERASED AND THE STATE WAS DECLARED DROUGHT-FREE.

7. MARBLE FALLS HEAVY RAIN EVENT OF JUNE 27
TWO LINES OF THUNDERSTORMS, ONE MOVING SOUTH FROM THE DALLAS AREA 
AND ONE MOVING SOUTHEAST FROM THE ABILENE AREA, INTERSECTED AND 
STALLED NEAR MARBLE FALLS, PRODUCING A SUSTAINED HEAVY RAINFALL OVER 
BURNET COUNTY FROM NEAR MIDNIGHT INTO THE MID MORNING HOURS OF 
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 27.  GENERAL RAINFALL OVER THE SOUTHERN HALF OF 
BURNET COUNTY WAS BETWEEN 10 AND 15 INCHES WITH THE HIGHEST RAIN 
TOTALS IN THE MARBLE FALLS AREA, WHERE UP TO 19 INCHES FELL. OVER 
EIGHT INCHES OF RAIN WAS MEASURED IN A ONE-HOUR STRETCH NEAR MARBLE 
FALLS. THIS VALUE IS VERY CLOSE TO THE ALL-TIME US ONE-HOUR RAINFALL 
RECORD. TEXAS MILITARY FORCES WERE MOBILIZED AND SENT INTO MARBLE 
FALLS TO HELP WITH RESCUES AND EVACUATIONS.  THE MILITARY PERSONNEL, 
ALONG WITH SWIFT WATER RESCUE AND OTHER FIRST RESPONDERS, COMPLETED 
32 HIGH WATER RESCUES AND EVACUATED HUNDREDS OF RESIDENTS.  MORE 
THAN 315 HOMES AND BUSINESSES WERE DAMAGED OR DESTROYED IN MARBLE 
FALLS, WITH SHELTERS SET UP IN SCHOOLS.   SEVERAL BRIDGES IN BURNET 
COUNTY WERE DESTROYED WITH SOME DAMAGE TO NEARLY EVERY ROAD AND 
STRUCTURE IN THE SOUTHERN HALF OF THE COUNTY.  NEARLY ALL PARKS, 
LAKES, ROADS AND BUSINESSES IN THE SOUTHERN HALF OF THE COUNTY WERE 
CLOSED ALL DAY.  DRINKING WATER IN MARBLE FALLS WAS CONTAMINATED BY 
THE FLOOD AND OVER 1000 RESIDENTS WERE WITHOUT WATER FOR AT LEAST A 
WEEK. TOTAL ESTIMATES OF THE DAMAGES WERE PLACED AT $130,000,000.  
TWO YOUNG MEN WERE ATTEMPTING TO DRIVE FROM MARBLE FALLS TO LEANDER 
IN THE EARLY MORNING HOURS WHEN THEIR JEEP WAS SWEPT INTO HIGH WATER 
EAST OF MARBLE FALLS AND THEY DROWNED. 

8.  TROPICAL STORM ERIN OF AUGUST 15 THROUGH 17 
TROPICAL STORM ERIN WAS THE SECOND TROPICAL CYCLONE TO MAKE LANDFALL 
IN THE US.  ON THE AFTERNOON OF AUGUST 15, PRIOR TO ERIN'S ARRIVAL, 
HEAVY RAIN BANDS STRUCK THE UPPER TEXAS COAST, PRODUCING RAIN TOTALS 
OF 5 TO 8 INCHES.  ERIN MOVED INLAND ON THE MORNING OF AUGUST 16 
NEAR PORT ARANSAS AND DIMINISHED TO A TROPICAL DEPRESSION SHORTLY 
AFTERWARD.  ERIN  PRODUCE THE HEAVIEST RAINFALL ALONG AND JUST EAST 
OF THE CENTER OF ITS TRACK.  AS IT LEFT THE COAST, IT MOVED TOWARD 
THE NORTHWEST, IN THE GENERAL DIRECTION OF SAN ANTONIO.  BY NOON ON 
AUGUST 16, THE REMNANTS OF ERIN WERE LOCATED NEAR PLEASANTON IN 
ATASCOSA COUNTY WITH WINDS NEAR 30 MPH, AND MOVING TOWARD THE 
NORTHWEST NEAR 14 MPH.  RAIN TOTALS FROM NEAR SAN ANTONIO SOUTHEAST 
ACROSS EASTERN KARNES COUNTY AND WESTERN DEWITT COUNTY WERE 
ESTIMATED AT 3 TO 5 INCHES. BY 6 PM CDT THAT EVENING, THE REMAINS OF 
ERIN WERE OVER THE GENERAL VICINITY OF HONDO.  THE HIGHEST RAIN 
TOTALS WERE INDICATED TO BE BETWEEN 6 AND 8 INCHES ACROSS AN AREA 
FROM CASTROVILLE TO BANDERA TO LUCKENBACH TO KENDALIA TO CANYON LAKE 
TO FLORESVILLE AND BACK TO CASTROVILLE.  THIS INCLUDES ALL OF BEXAR 
COUNTY AND THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO.  WHAT WAS LEFT OF ERIN WAS 
ESTIMATED TO BE IN THE ROCKSPRINGS AREA AT MIDNIGHT ON AUGUST 16 AND 
NEAR OZONA ON THE MORNING OF AUGUST 17.  BY THE MORNING OF AUGUST 
17, MOST OF THE HEAVY RAIN WAS LOCATED ALONG AND NORTH OF THE CENTER 
OF CIRCULATION OF THE REMNANT OF ERIN.  RAIN TOTALS FROM ERIN IN 
SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS WERE ESTIMATED AT BETWEEN 7 AND 10 INCHES OVER 
MOST OF KERR, GILLESPIE, KENDALL, BANDERA, COMAL, BEXAR AND MEDINA 
COUNTIES.  AMONG THE HIGHEST TOTALS WAS A REPORT OF JUST OVER 15 
INCHES IN SOUTHERN GILLESPIE COUNTY.  FLASH FLOODING IN ASSOCIATION 
WITH ERIN BEGAN ON THE AFTERNOON OF AUGUST 16 AND CONTINUED INTO THE 
EARLY MORNING HOURS OF AUGUST 17.  UNFORTUNATELY 2 DEATHS RESULTED 
FROM THE FLASH FLOODING IN BEXAR COUNTY ON AUGUST 16 AND 2 FROM THE 
FLASH FLOODING IN KENDALL COUNTY, ALSO ON AUGUST 16.

9. THE UNUSUALLY COOL AND WET SUMMER OF 2007 
A COMBINATION OF PERSISTENT STORMS AND SEMI-TROPICAL SYSTEMS OVER 
SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS BROUGHT WELL ABOVE-AVERAGE RAINFALL AND 
UNSEASONABLY MILD TEMPERATURES IN THE SUMMER OF 2007.  DAILY HIGHS 
TEMPERATURES FOR JUNE THROUGH AUGUST AT AUSTIN, SAN ANTONIO, AND DEL 
RIO, AVERAGED FROM 2 TO 7 DEGREES COOLER THAN NORMAL.  DAILY LOW 
TEMPERATURES SHOWED LITTLE CHANGE, HOWEVER, FROM NORMAL VALUES.  THE 
WIDESPREAD RAIN AND CLOUDINESS ACROSS SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS PREVENTED 
STRONG HEATING OF THE ATMOSPHERE THAT WOULD HAVE PRODUCED THE 
USUALLY HOT DAYS.  THIS CLOUDINESS ALSO MODERATED THE NIGHTTIME 
MINIMUMS, NOT ALLOWING TEMPERATURES TO COOL GREATLY.  FURTHER 
EVIDENCE OF THE EFFECT ON TEMPERATURES WAS SEEN IN A NEAR-TOTAL-LACK 
OF 100 DEGREE DAYS.  OF THE FOUR LONG-TERM CLIMATOLOGICAL SITES, 
OFFICIAL RECORDS SHOWED 100-DEGREE READINGS ONLY AT AUSTIN MABRY - 
ON AUGUST 12, 13 AND 14.  IN AN "AVERAGE" YEAR THERE ARE ABOUT A 
DOZEN 100-DEGREE DAYS IN AUSTIN, WITH ABOUT 20 AT DEL RIO AND 8 IN 
SAN ANTONIO.  THIS WAS INDEED AN UNUSUAL SUMMER.  IN FACT, THE ONLY 
99 DEGREE READINGS WERE REPORTED AT AUSTIN BERGSTROM ON AUGUST 12 
AND 13.  OUTSIDE OF THESE READINGS, SUMMER DAILY HIGH TEMPS WERE 98 
DEGREES OR COOLER AT ALL FOUR SITES.  AGAIN, THIS WAS A RESULT OF 
THE COMBINATION OF FREQUENT RAIN, PERSISTENT CLOUDINESS, AND VERY 
WET-TO-NEARLY-SATURATED SOILS.  RAIN TOTALS FOR JUNE THROUGH AUGUST 
AT THE FOUR SITES RANGED FROM MORE THAN 150 PERCENT OF NORMAL TO 
ALMOST 300 PERCENT OF NORMAL.  RAINFALL EXCEEDED NORMAL AMOUNTS BY 
AROUND 5 INCHES IN THE WEST, ABOUT 10 INCHES IN THE NORTH AND JUST 
OVER 15 INCHES IN THE SOUTH.  ONE POSITIVE EFFECT OF THE COOL AND 
RAINY PERIOD WAS A WILDFLOWER EXHIBIT OVER PARTS OF THE STATE THAT 
EXTENDED INTO JULY, FAR BEYOND THE NORMAL END OF THE EVENT.

10.  THE OCTOBER 15 HEAVY RAIN EVENT IN THE SOUTHEAST COUNTIES 
A COLD FRONT MOVED ACROSS SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS ON THE AFTERNOON OF 
MONDAY, OCTOBER 15, SLOWING AS IT REACHED THE MID TEXAS COASTAL 
PLAINS.  THE FRONT FINALLY STALLED JUST NEAR A SEALY TO 
HALLETTSVILLE TO PLEASANTON LINE LATE THAT AFTERNOON.  SHOWERS AND 
THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUED TO DEVELOP ALONG THE FRONT THROUGH EVENING 
AND LATE NIGHT, WITH TOTALS BY 6 PM CDT AROUND 3 INCHES IN SOUTHERN 
LAVACA COUNTY AND HIGHER AMOUNTS TO THE EAST.  BY MIDNIGHT, RAIN 
TOTALS IN SOUTHERN LAVACA COUNTY WERE APPROACHING 6 INCHES IN PLACES 
AND BY SUNRISE TOTALS WERE BETWEEN 8 AND 10 INCHES.  REPORTS FROM 
THE RECENTLY ACTIVATED COCORAHS NETWORK (WWW.COCORAHS.ORG) CONFIRMED 
EVENT TOTALS OF BETWEEN 10 AND 15 INCHES JUST NORTH OF SPEAKS IN 
SOUTHEAST LAVACA COUNTY.  THE HEAVY RAIN CAUSED RAPID RISES ALONG 
THE NAVIDAD RIVER FROM SOUTHERN LAVACA COUNTY INTO JACKSON COUNTY, 
WITH MODERATE FLOODING AT MORALES IN NORTHERN JACKSON COUNTY THROUGH 
THE EARLY MORNING NIGHT HOURS OF OCTOBER 17.  

11.  AN EXTRA STORY:  THE DEVASTATING LOSS OF LIFE IN TEXAS IN 2007
 
THE YEAR 2007 WAS A DEADLY ONE FOR THE STATE OF TEXAS.  MORE THAN 
SIXTY PEOPLE LOST THEIR LIVES THIS YEAR IN RAPIDLY FLOWING CREEKS 
AND STREAMS, RIVERS AND LOW WATER CROSSINGS.  THOSE DEATHS OCCURRED 
IN (1) FLASH FLOODS, (2) RIVER AND STREAM FLOODS, AND (3) RIVERS AND 
STREAMS WITH FAST CURRENTS THAT WERE NOT FLOODING.  THIS THIRD GROUP 
WILL BE REFERRED TO AS "HIGH WATER" EVENTS.  ALTHOUGH PAST RECORDS 
WERE NOT KEPT OF "HIGH WATER" DEATHS, IT IS CLEAR FROM LOOKING AT 
THE FLASH FLOOD DEATHS THAT 2007, WITH ITS 42 FLASH FLOOD DEATHS, 
HAS BEEN AN EXCEPTIONAL YEAR.  EVEN IN THE DEVASTATING FLOODS THAT 
STRUCK TEXAS IN 1998 AND 2002, THE FLASH FLOOD DEATH TOLL WAS 
MARKEDLY LOWER.  IN FACT, IT APPEARS THAT NO EVENT IN THE PAST 
QUARTER-CENTURY CAN COME CLOSE TO THE NUMBER OF FLASH FLOOD DEATHS 
IN 2007.  RECORDS KEEPERS WOULD LIKELY HAVE TO GO BACK AS FAR AS 
TROPICAL STORM AMELIA IN 1978 TO FIND A DEADLIER YEAR.  THESE SAD 
AND DEPRESSING FACTS GENERATED A CALL TO A "FLOOD WAR COUNCIL" BY 
MORE THAN A DOZEN STATE, FEDERAL AND LOCAL AGENCIES IN OCTOBER.  THE 
COUNCIL REVIEWED THE EVENTS AND CAME UP WITH SEVERAL CONCLUSIONS.  

GROUP 1, DEATHS IN FLASH FLOODS.  
OF THE 42 DEATHS, 32 WERE VEHICLE-RELATED.  THAT'S MORE THAN 75 
PERCENT.  ALSO, 6 OF THE DEATHS OCCURRED BECAUSE THE VICTIM WAS 
WALKING OR PLAYING IN OR AROUND THE FLASH FLOODING.  THAT ACCOUNTS 
FOR ALMOST 15 PERCENT OF THE DEATHS.  SO, MORE THAN 90 PERCENT OF 
THESE DEATHS OCCURRED DUE TO THESE TWO DANGEROUS ACTIVITIES.  IT WAS 
ALSO NOTED THAT MORE THAN 80 PERCENT OF THE EVENTS TOOK PLACE IN THE 
DARK WHEN IT WAS VERY DIFFICULT TO RECOGNIZE THE FLASH FLOODS IN 
TIME TO STOP AND AVOID THEM.  FLASH FLOOD DEATHS INVOLVED ALL AGE 
GROUPS, WITH 52 PERCENT OF THE VICTIMS BEING MALE AND 48 PERCENT 
FEMALE.

GROUP 2, DEATHS IN FLOODED RIVERS AND STREAMS.
THREE DEATHS OCCURRED IN THIS GROUP.  TWO WERE RELATED AFTER A YOUNG 
MAN FELL INTO A FLOODED RIVER AND A FRIEND DROWNED WHILE TRYING TO 
SAVE HIM.  THAT GENERATED A SEARCH FOR THE FRIEND AND ONE OF THE 
SEARCHERS DROWNED WHEN HIS BOAT CAPSIZED.  THE THIRD DEATH WAS 
VEHICLE-RELATED.  THESE DEATHS OCCURRED MAINLY IN THE DAYLIGHT 
PERIOD AND INVOLVED ALL AGE GROUPS.  

GROUP 3, DEATHS IN "HIGH WATER".
THESE 18 DEATHS IN SWIFT CURRENTS OF RIVERS AND STREAMS STILL WITHIN 
BANKS WERE GENERALLY RELATED TO WALKING, PLAYING, BOATING, OR 
SWIMMING IN THE FLOWS.  IT APPEARED THAT MOST VICTIMS THOUGHT THEY 
WOULD BE ABLE TO WALK OR SWIM IN THE WATER SAFELY BUT WERE UNABLE TO 
DO SO.  THESE EVENTS GENERALLY OCCURRED IN DAYLIGHT, WITH GOOD 
VISIBILITY, AND INVOLVED ALL AGE GROUPS.  SEVENTY-FIVE PERCENT OF 
THESE VICTIMS WERE MALES AND 25 PERCENT WERE FEMALES.

THE WAR COUNCIL WILL CONTINUE TO LOOK INTO THE EVENTS OF THIS YEAR 
AND SUGGEST IDEAS FOR IMPROVING PUBLIC SAFETY.  IN THE MEAN TIME, 
THE BEST ADVICE IS TO STAY OUT OF FAST MOVING WATER AND "TURN 
AROUND, DON'T DROWN."