Heavy rain falls across parts of South
A cold front moving across the South this weekend is bringing badly needed rain to the region.
HOUSTON – The South is currently facing a severe drought and is in desperate need of rain. While consistent precipitation is essential for long-term relief, any amount of rainfall can be beneficial.
A cold front sliding across the region this weekend is providing some much-needed help.
A cool, rainy day is photographed at the National Weather Service office in Midland, Texas, on Thursday, Nov. 9, 2023. (NWS Midland / X)
The rainfall is anticipated to be the heaviest since early October, when a storm system dropped 3 inches of rain across parts of the Houston metro area.
“We’ve got this area of low pressure that’s very close to the Gulf – helping to pump in more moisture,” FOX Weather Meteorologist Craig Herrera said. “Through the day tomorrow (Saturday), some of the moisture expands over into most of the Gulf Coast states, all the way through portions of Mississippi, Louisiana, over to Alabama, Georgia, and parts of Tennessee, needing more moisture as well.”
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Where is rain expected?
With tropical moisture from the Gulf of Mexico rolling in ahead of the cold front, widespread rain of varying intensity is expected from southern and southeastern Texas, including Houston and Corpus Christi, to the Ark-La-Tex region of Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas.
Even though the rain may become heavy at times, the threat of flash flooding is low since the soils are so dry from the lack of rainfall.
Showers are also expected to extend northeastward into parts of the Southeast, southern and central Appalachians and mid-Atlantic, the FOX Forecast Center said. An area of high pressure over eastern Canada will likely prevent the showers from reaching the Northeast because of dry air filtering in beneath the high-pressure system.
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Rainy periods are forecast to continue through the weekend along the Gulf Coast. Between 3 and 5 inches of rainfall is expected near the Gulf coasts of Texas and Louisiana. Other states such as Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia – also in dire need of rainfall – have a chance to receive it this weekend as well, although amounts will be much lower.
“For Houston, it’s an extended period … all the way through the beginning of next week,” FOX Weather Meteorologist Britta Merwin said. “So if we can spread it out, that lowers the flash flood threat, which I do think is on the low end. I’m not too worried about it.”
According to National Weather Service historical data, the Houston area annually sees a November monthly rainfall total of 3.87 inches, meaning the ongoing rain event has the potential to produce a month’s worth of rainfall in just three days.
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Parched South
Houston experienced its 10th driest summer on record, while New Orleans had its second-driest summer, which could lead to a higher risk of wildfires due to the significant rainfall deficit.
“This weekend, we continuously have this moisture that’s streaming into the Gulf Coast states, so this really could be great news for Louisiana,” Merwin said. “They will have lower rain totals than what we’re going to see in Texas, but at this point, we will take anything we can get.”
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While the rainfall is welcome news, the precipitation will not help communities make up their yearly deficit.
Many observation sites across Texas are reporting rainfall deficits of between 10 and 30 inches, meaning it would take an extended period of storminess to end the drought. With a little more than 50 days left in the calendar year, it may be into 2024 before some communities along the Gulf Coast catch up on much-needed rainfall.
