If you live in West Texas then yesterday’s torrential rain is old news, but a 3″+ rainfall is still rare enough in these parts to make it worth writing about…or at least worth posting a few photos.
Our neighborhood didn’t sustain any damage from the rain or the hail, other than leaves knocked off various shrubs and trees. The drainage system out here performed admirably, unlike in other parts of Midland. And Debbie and I actually missed most of the excitement as we were enjoying Iron Man 2 while the heaviest part of the storm moved across the city (although it was sometimes hard to distinguish movie sound effects from Mother Nature’s).
Here’s a photo of our neighborhood’s south pond. The water level is about 4′ higher than normal. If you can’t quite make out the sign, it says “No Swimming or Wading,” and it’s normally on dry ground. That junk floating in the water is mulch that washed down from the bank.
Here’s another view showing the sidewalk that normally leads to the dock.
Despite the heavy rains, we still managed to have a spectacular sunset.
The thunderhead in the distance was moving away from us. We were more than happy to share it with someone else.
Eric, it does make a person wonder if the climate is changing. When was the last time Midland got that much rain? And you’ve been getting some along, havent you? Makes for pretty flowers. We’re ready for sunshine for a week or so. Loved the pictures you’ve been posting!
Alice, I think it’s just the El Niño weather pattern. It seems to kick in every 5-10 years and we get abnormally wet weather. That 3″ rain just barely made the top 10 list, and those were spaced out with one or two each decade. So, while it’s unusual, it still fits in with the typical pattern for West Texas.
But I agree that it’s time for some sunshine! I hate mowing wet grass…
You got away rather light :>] In my old neighborhood, neighbor Bart Hotchkiss recoreded over 5 inches.
The ironic thing is that nobody *needs* 5″ of rain around here, or even 3″. Probably anything over an inch is just wasted since the ground can’t absorb it. We don’t even have any lakes to fill with the runoff (unless you count the Duck Pond and Grafa Park!).