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MESONET TICKER ... MESONET TICKER ... MESONET TICKER ... MESONET TICKER ... October 29, 2020 October 29, 2020 October 29, 2020 October 29, 2020 Is that all ya got?? http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20201029/4day-rain-totals.png We're finally above freezing and so we're getting a better tally on the liquid equivalent storm totals from arguably the most impactful October winter storm in our history. We did have that blizzard of up to 15 inches of snow in Cimarron County and killed as many as 15,000 head of cattle across the Panhandle back on Oct. 25-26, 1997. Then there was the 13 inches of snow at Arnett last Oct. 24-25. Those were more localized, however. The footprint of this storm rivaled even the biggest storms of ANY winter storm, regardless of month. We had 4-8 inches of snow across the Panhandle, which was momentous in its own right. The biggest impact, however, was obviously the ice. Sleet we can handle, although it didn't help this time since leaves still contained most of their leaves. Those full branches helped capture sleep this time, which would normally just be a driving hazard. Then the freezing rain came down by the bucketful, leaving us with radial ice amounts of up to 3", which means up to 6" of ice on power lines, trees and fences. Here are some pics from our friends at the Oklahoma Association of Electric Cooperatives. These pics come from what could be considered the epicenter of the ice storm, the area around Calumet and Geary areas. Pic credits, in order: Photo 1: Mike Burge, TCEC Photo 2: B.J. Appleton, TCEC Photo 3: Matt Crandall, Cimarron Electric Cooperative Photo 4: Eric Roberts, Cimarron Electric Cooperative Photo 5: Michelle Mowdy, Member, Cimarron Electric Cooperative http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20201029/IMG_7275.JPG http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20201029/IMG_2030.JPEG http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20201029/IMG_7277.JPG http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20201029/IMG_7278.JPG http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20201029/IMG_7279.JPG And these are from the Binger area, taken by Clint Pack, CEO of CKenergy. http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20201029/IMG_1031.JPG http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20201029/IMG_1032.JPG These pics are all courtesy of Sid Sperry of the OAEC, and also creator of the SPIA (Sperry-Piltz Ice Accumulation) index, which categorizes the threat of ice storm damage to power utility infrastructure due to ice accumulation and winds. Sid, who knows more about the physical manifestation of ice storm damage to power infrastructure than just about anybody on earth, tells us the ice accretion amounts on power lines with this storm rivaled or beat those of the "Mother of all Oklahoma ice storms," which hit the northwestern half of the state back in January 2002. You can read about that storm here: http://climate.ok.gov/summaries/event/Oklahoma_Ice_Storm_01_2002.pdf The only thing missing from this storm was the high winds that would have created even more catastrophic damage to the power utility infrastructure, like power poles. That January 2002 storm left 255,000 without power, some for several weeks, and the utility companies lost over 50,000 poles and over 1,550 miles of destroyed power supply capabilities, enough to stretch from Oklahoma City to New York City. The December 2007 I-44 Corridor storm left almost 700,000 customers without power, however, for the largest power outage footprint from that 2000-2010 period, otherwise known in Oklahoma as "The Ice Storm Decade." http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20201029/The.Ice.Storm.Decade.png Even with the lower sustained wind speeds, power across all the different utility companies in Oklahoma amounted to 388,792 electric customers without power according to the OK Dept. of Emergency Management and Homeland Security, which undoubtedly comes close to a million Oklahomans without power. The tree damage from the storm was catastrophic in its own right, and we will be seeing evidence of that for years to come. We're STILL dealing with heavy rainfall across the NE quarter of the state, which is creating a flooding hazard in those waterlogged areas. But at least temperatures are well above freezing. http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20201029/current-radar.png http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20201029/latest.oklahoma.flood.gif http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20201029/current-temps.png Speaking of freezing, most of the state (save for the SE corner) has not had at least a couple days of a freeze, with some areas across the northwest astoundingly having a couple of days with HIGHS below freezing. It's October for crying out loud! http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20201029/tmin.le32.png http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20201029/tmax.le32.png Now we get a nice warm up back into October/November territory, with a good chance to dry out as well. http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20201029/nws-norman-7day-temps.png http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20201029/7day-precip-forecast.gif A bunch of the precip fell after the Tuesday, 7am cutoff point for moisture to be considered in the new Drought Monitor map, but we did see big improvements to the southeast of I44. http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20201029/20201027_OK_trd.png I'm fairly confident we'll see more improvements in the map next week when the rest of the storm's moisture is able to be considered. Until then, let's start gathering those tree limbs and making sure everybody that needs power gets power, with some help along the way until they do. La Nina. HA! Gary McManus State Climatologist Oklahoma Mesonet Oklahoma Climatological Survey (405) 325-2253 gmcmanus@mesonet.org
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