Rain Quantity

[Red Arrow]

Here near 111th & Memorial we've had 7.5" this go-around.

Anyone else keeping track?

[Conan71]

All I know is the rain barrel is full.

[Red Arrow]

All I know is the rain barrel is full.

You need a bigger barrel or more barrels to save for the next drought. 

[Breadburner]

About 5 here.....

[Hoss]

Not quite as much as you guys.  I was gone most of the day yesterday to Wichita, but Davis weather station trudges on.  2.34" yesterday and sofar 1.71" today for a little over 4" of rain.  My station this year has recorded over 54 inches of precip.  Compare to last year's total of 27.60".  No drought here now.

[Red Arrow]

We are at 8.15" at 4:00 PM

[Conan71]

Our soil is very saturated around my house.  I have a poly pad under our hot tub.  When you step across it, water squishes out.  THAT's saturated!  Our French drain has had a hard time staying caught up as well.

[Hoss]

Our soil is very saturated around my house.  I have a poly pad under our hot tub.  When you step across it, water squishes out.  THAT's saturated!  Our French drain has had a hard time staying caught up as well.

Went to Wichita yesterday by way of a friend who drove (hockey road trip) that lives in rural Creek County (Mannford, but actually Lawrence Creek, just south of Hwy 51 on Hwy 48).  He was one of the many in that area that lost his home in the fire of 2012, but he had insurance and rebuilt.

He tells me to park in the yard.  We take our trip and leave at 2pm.  Come back from Wichita and I was all ready to make the 40 minute trek home.

Until this happened





Not sure how much rain he got, but it was enough I couldn't get out.  We had to call a wrecker to pull me out of that river.  Luckily my friend is a Mannford PD dispatcher and has connections with those guys.  The guy pulled the car out for nothing.  Gotta love small towns.  We took these photos when we went to breakfast this morning before the wrecker showed up.

[Red Arrow]

Went to Wichita yesterday by way of a friend who drove (hockey road trip) that lives in rural Creek County (Mannford, but actually Lawrence Creek, just south of Hwy 51 on Hwy 48).  He was one of the many in that area that lost his home in the fire of 2012, but he had insurance and rebuilt.

He tells me to park in the yard.  We take our trip and leave at 2pm.  Come back from Wichita and I was all ready to make the 40 minute trek home.

Until this happened





Not sure how much rain he got, but it was enough I couldn't get out.  We had to call a wrecker to pull me out of that river.  Luckily my friend is a Mannford PD dispatcher and has connections with those guys.  The guy pulled the car out for nothing.  Gotta love small towns.  We took these photos when we went to breakfast this morning before the wrecker showed up.

Well, at least it didn't get to your wheel bearings.  You should be OK.

[Conan71]

Well, at least it didn't get to your wheel bearings.  You should be OK.

Well, yeah, but he's still pretty stuck

[Red Arrow]

Well, yeah, but he's still pretty stuck

Well, yes.   Being stuck is not the same as being stuck and ruining your wheel bearings or incurring flood damage.  Just observing.

[Hoss]

Well, yes.   Being stuck is not the same as being stuck and ruining your wheel bearings or incurring flood damage.  Just observing.

Yeah, and I didn't even need to clean off the mud from the wheels.  The 40 minute trek back in the driving rain did that.

[Breadburner]

Lol...Rookie....

[Red Arrow]

With flurries ending, we got 9.8" of rain and melted sleet since Christmas.

[cannon_fodder]

Fun facts about Tulsa rainfall:

- "average" is a loose term. In each decade we often have a year with less than 30" and a year with more than 50". The "average" is near 41"
(Hilo Hawaii is the highest City average, at 156", with the nearby Volcano National Park receiving 240"+. Albuquerque is the largest US metro to get less than 10" [9.4"]. Los Angeles is actually a desert, with only 12". Wichita gets 10" less than Tulsa, on average. Seattle only gets 36")
http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0762183.html

- It rains, on average, 91 days a year in Tulsa (155 days a year in Seattle and Pittsburgh [who knew?], 223 in Juneau Alaska,  and only 60 in Albuquerque)

- 2014 was drier than any of the "dust bowl" years, other than 1939

- the 1950s were the driest decade, with the msot years < 30" and three years below 25" (no other recorded decade has rainfall below 25")

- 2003 - 2009 were "wet" years, with the exception of 2005, which made the drought between 2010 - 2014 seem that much worse

- Flooding correlates most with brief periods of lots of rain, and not necessarily yearlong averages (might seem obvious when stated, but...)
https://www.cityoftulsa.org/city-services/flood-control/flooding-history.aspx

- 1973 is the wettest year on record, with 69.88" of rain. 1915 is the only other recorded year over 60".

- Unofficial current rainfall for the year is 62.3"

historical data:
http://www.srh.noaa.gov/tsa/?n=climo_tulyearrain

Looking at the data it is amazing how crazy out rain is. Look at one month for any given decade - you may have a run of 2, 3, and 4s, then a zero, then a 10. Annual totals are nearly as crazy - just as commo nto be down in the San Antonio range, or up in the Miami range.  I know its cliche, but wow that's manic.