NATIONAL STORM SUMMARY

JULY

June 27-July 3: Meanwhile, scattered to widespread showers and thunderstorms affected the southeastern half of the country. An axis of heavy rain (locally 4 to 8 inches or more) stretched from the southern Plains into the lower Midwest.

Showers and thunderstorms peppered the south-central U.S. for much of the week. Midland, TX, received weekly rainfall totaling exactly 6 inches, aided by daily-record amounts (2.67 and 1.29 inches, respectively) on June 27-28. Elsewhere in Texas, daily-
record totals included 2.17 inches (on June 28) at Houston’s Hobby Airport and 1.47 inches (on June 27) in El Paso. In fact, El Paso received measurable rain each day during the week, totaling 4.08 inches. For the year to date though June 26, El Paso’
s precipitation had totaled just 1.02 inches (46 percent of normal). Meanwhile in New Mexico, more than an inch of rain fell in Ruidoso each day from June 28-30, totaling 4.01 inches. Heavy showers were also common in the Gulf Coast States, including
Florida, where daily-record amounts reached 3.86 inches (on June 29) in Miami and 2.63 inches (on July 3) in Tampa. Farther north, June rainfall totals topped 10 inches in Midwestern locations such as Columbia, MO (10.85 inches, or 257 percent of normal),
and Kalamazoo, MI (10.66 inches, or 333 percent). For Columbia, it was the wettest June since 1928, when 14.86 inches fell. Kalamazoo topped a June rainfall record (8.32 inches) originally set in 1978. In contrast, it was the driest June on record in
several Northern communities, including Havre, MT (0.12 inch; previously, 0.16 inch in 1985), and Pocatello, ID (0.01 inch; previously, 0.02 inch in 1974). During the mid- to late-week period, heavy showers swept across the mid-South and Midwest,
eventually reaching the East. The last day of June featured a daily-record sum of 2.67 inches in Quincy, IL. The following day, rainfall records for July 1 were established in Kentucky locations such as Louisville (2.92 inches) and Lexington (2.46 inches)
. With 3.04 inches, Blacksburg, VA, also netted a record-setting total for July 1. By July 2, Newark, NJ (1.53 inches, including some hail), and Watertown, NY (1.07 inches), collected daily-record amounts. Elsewhere, spotty, monsoon related showers
produced a daily-record total (0.26 inch) for July 3 in Phoenix, AZ.

4-10: Elsa, the earliest fifth named tropical cyclone in Atlantic Basin history, produced heavy rain and gusty winds in parts of Florida before soaking the Atlantic Seaboard. Briefly a hurricane twice during its life cycle, Elsa crossed Cuba on July 5
and passed west of the Florida Keys on July 6. As a tropical storm, Elsa made landfall on the Gulf Coast in Taylor County, FL, on July 7, later moving roughly parallel to the Atlantic Coast. Elsa made the transition to a post-tropical cyclone on July 9
along the northern Atlantic Coast. Meanwhile, showers and thunderstorms—related to the monsoon circulation and a slow-moving storm system, respectively—dotted the Southwest and Midwest.

In Maine, it was the wettest Independence Day on record in locations such as Bangor (2.00 inches) and Augusta (1.18 inches). Dalhart, TX, also experienced its wettest July 4 on record, with 1.85 inches. Meanwhile, hail was reported on July 4 in Colorado
Springs, CO. Later, some beneficial showers developed across the North. On July 5, record-setting totals included 0.69 inch in Rapid City, SD, and 0.62 inch in Casper, WY. However, some of the Northern showers were accompanied by severe weather; in
Lewistown, MT, a July-record thunderstorm wind gust to 73 mph was clocked on the 7th. Lewistown’s previous monthly record had been 72 mph on July 14, 2002. Meanwhile, heavy rain developed along the rim of the Gulf Coast, as well as the southern
Atlantic States. The latter region’s rain was related to the arrival of Tropical Storm Elsa on the 6th. In fact, July 6 featured daily-record totals in Key West, FL (3.67 inches), and Galveston, TX (2.24 inches). The following day, record-setting
rainfall totals for July 7 included 4.67 inches in Gainesville, FL; 4.63 inches in McAllen, TX; and 4.43 inches on St. Simons Island, GA. In Texas, July 1-10 rainfall included 9.10 inches in Victoria and 8.48 inches in Corpus Christi. Unofficially, 19.60
inches fell from July 5- 9 in Rockport, TX. Near Refugio, TX, Copano Creek crested on July 9 at 7.17 feet above flood stage, second only to the high-water mark (9.00 feet above flood stage) of September 12, 1971. The Mission River in Refugio (8.24 feet
above flood stage on July 11) achieved its highest crest since July 1990. Back in Florida, the core of Elsa passed close enough to the Florida Keys on July 6 to generate a wind gust to 70 mph in Key West. Two days later, the remnants of Elsa resulted in
daily-record amounts for July 8 in Raleigh-Durham, NC (2.52 inches); Georgetown, DE (2.45 inches); Florence, SC (2.30 inches); and New York’s Central Park (2.27 inches. On July 9, Central Park reported another daily-record sum (2.06 inches). Other
daily-record totals exceeding 2 inches on the 9th included 4.15 inches in Bridgeport, CT; 3.48 inches in Bangor, ME; and 2.47 inches in Worcester, MA. Late in the week, heavy showers developed across the mid-South and Midwest. Batesville, AR (2.42 inches)
, collected a record-setting total for July 9, followed the next day by a 3.76-inch deluge in Lamoni, IA.

11-17: Active weather across the South, East, and lower Midwest maintained adequate to abundant moisture reserves for pastures. Heavy showers caused local flooding, but overall impacts were mostly minor. Some of the heaviest rain, locally 4 inches or
more, fell from the middle Mississippi Valley into the lower Great Lakes region. Meanwhile, the interaction between the monsoon circulation and a cold front delivered scattered to widespread showers across the Plains and Southwest, although rainfall
amounts were highly variable.

Early in the week, locally heavy showers peppered the South and East. Record-setting totals for July 11 included 2.17 inches in Harrisburg, PA, and 1.92 inches in San Angelo, TX. In Louisiana, daily-record amounts reached 1.44 inches (on July 11) in
Shreveport and 1.03 inches (on July 12) in New Orleans. Southern showers continued for several days; additional daily records totaled 2.96 inches (on July 13) in Lufkin, TX, and 1.86 inches (on July 14) in Asheville, NC. Meanwhile, a robust Southwestern
monsoon circulation led to widespread thundershowers in drought-affected areas. Marysvale, UT, netted 0.55 inch in a 24-hour period on July 13-14. A day after tying its highest-ever temperature (117°F on July 10), Las Vegas, NV, received rainfall
totaling 0.10 inch. It was the wettest day in Las Vegas since March 12, as only 0.03 inch had fallen in the 120-day period from March 13 to July 10. On July 15, monsoon-related daily-record totals included 1.14 inches in Kingman, AZ, and 0.49 inch in
Eureka, NV. During the second half of the week, showers and thunderstorms swept across the Midwest and environs. Chanute, KS, measured a daily-record sum of 3.02 inches on July 15. The following day, record-setting totals for the 16th reached 2.72 inches
in Fort Wayne, IN, and 2.20 inches in Detroit, MI. The week ended as it began, with heavy rain pelting parts of the South and East. On July 17, daily-record totals topped the 2-inch mark in Rochester, NY (3.03 inches); Greenville, MS (2.99 inches); and
Poughkeepsie, NY (2.15 inches).

18-24: Significant rain fell in parts of the Northeast, Southeast, and Southwest. The monsoon-related Southwestern rainfall, heaviest across Arizona and portions of neighboring states, provided limited drought relief but sparked flash flooding. The
Southeastern rain, which maintained abundant moisture reserves.

Dozens of wildfires continued to burn from northern California to the northern Rockies, with containment efforts hampered by heat, erratic winds, and drought-cured vegetation. Oregon’s third-largest wildfire in modern history, the Bootleg Fire, has
burned more than 400,000 acres of timber and brush. California’s largest active blaze, the Dixie Fire, has charred nearly 200,000 acres only about 15 miles northeast of the town of Paradise, which was devastated by the Camp Fire in 2018.

25-31: Most parts of the country received some precipitation, but higher totals were limited to selected areas. For example, pockets of heavy rain dotted the Southeast, including Florida, the Tennessee Valley, and the middle Atlantic coastal plain.
Another area of significant rain affected the Northeast. Meanwhile, many areas of the Midwest received little or no rain during the last 7 days of July, but there were notable exceptions. On July 28-29, locally severe thunderstorms swept southward from
the upper Great Lakes region. Later, heavy rain fell on July 30-31 in parts of the southwestern Corn Belt. Farther west, streaks of heavy showers interrupted an otherwise dry pattern across the Plains.

Heavy showers continued for much of the week in the Southwest, where Tucson, AZ, completed its wettest month on record. Tucson’s monthly total, 8.06 inches (365 percent of normal), surpassed 7.93 inches in August 1955; previously, the wettest July in
that location had occurred in 2017, with 6.80 inches. During the 9-day period from July 22-30, Tucson was pelted by 6.30 inches of rain—far greater than the 2020 annual sum of 4.17 inches. Tucson also received at least an inch of rain on 3 days (July
24, 25, and 27) during a month for the first time since July 2007. Monsoonrelated showers briefly spread as far west as southern California, where downtown Los Angeles secured its third-wettest July, with 0.22 inch. Higher July totals in Los Angeles
occurred in 2015 (0.38 inch) and 1886 (0.24 inch). Scattered showers also spread into parts of the Northwest, where record-setting rainfall totals for July 27 included 0.67 inch in Burley, ID, and 0.38 inch in Klamath Falls, OR. Another round of
Northwestern showers on July 31 led to daily-record totals in Idaho locations such as Idaho Falls (1.28 inches) and Boise (0.83 inch). In Utah, late-July downpours led to flash flooding in numerous communities, including Cedar City and Tooele. In
Colorado, a debris flow in Glenwood Canyon on July 29 closed Interstate 70. Pueblo, CO, received 2.76 inches of rain on the 31st, representing the wettest July day on record and wettest day during any month since October 8, 1957. Late-week rain also
soaked parts of the southwestern Corn Belt, where Des Moines, IA, received 2.91 inches on July 30-31. In the South and East, daily-record totals topped 2 inches in Greenville-Spartanburg, SC (3.68 inches on July 26); Nashville, TN (3.13 inches on July 31)
; Morgantown, WV (2.99 inches on July 29); and Sarasota-Bradenton, FL (2.68 inches on July 27). Farther north, the wettest July on record closed in Worcester, MA (13.85 inches); Binghamton, NY (9.82 inches); and Bangor, ME (7.67 inches).

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