Released January 6, 1998, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, U.S. Department of Agriculture. For information on "Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin" call Rhonda Brandt (202) 720-7621, office hours 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET. National Agricultural Summary December 29 - January 4 Highlights: Most of the Nation was without significant precipitation except for an area stretching from the Gulf up the Appalachian chain and through New York and New England. Rains in southern areas and heavy snow in the Northeast further stressed livestock. The country experienced above-normal temperatures in all areas except for the Southeastern States. The continued lack of rainfall in the northern Plains added stress to the winter wheat crop, and the above-normal temperatures have reduced the snow cover. Some parts of the northern Plains have not received significant moisture for about 3 months. In Florida, sugarcane harvest was active. Citrus growers were using irrigation to maintain good tree and fruit conditions. Harvest was increasing following the holiday slowdown. Large amounts of early and mid-season oranges were being moved to processors and smaller quantities to the fresh packers. In California, field activities were expected to resume as fields dried following earlier rains. National Weather Summary Volume 85, No. 1 December 28, 1997 - January 3, 1998 For additional information, call (202) 720-7917. Highlights: Fairly tranquil weather prevailed except in the East, where an early- to midweek storm brought rain, snow, and wind. Despite a late-week Arctic intrusion into the North Central States, weekly temperatures averaged 6 to 16 degrees F above normal. In advance of the cold front, more than 50 daily-record highs were set during the first 3 days of 1998 from the northern Plains into the Northeast. In contrast, temperatures averaged as much as 6 degrees F below normal in the Southeast, where cold air lingered in the storm's wake. Storminess arrived along the West Coast toward week's end, delivering more than 2 inches of rain to coastal areas from Washington to central California, and more than 4 inches of precipitation in parts of the northern Sierra Nevada and Washington Cascades. The East's storm dumped heavy snow as far south as the Carolinas, where 5.2 inches fell in Greensboro, NC. Local totals in excess of 2 inches occurred as far south as eastern Alabama and northern Georgia. More than a foot, with isolated totals greater than 2 feet, fell from the central Appalachians to the Adirondacks and Green Mountains. December 29-31 snowfall reached 22 inches in Pocahontas County, WV, and 25 inches at both Tupper Lake, NY and Jay, VT. On Tuesday morning, wind gusts were clocked to 68 mph in New Bedford, MA and 59 mph on Block Island, RI. Across the East, several daily-record lows were set or tied on New Year's Day, including -9 degrees F in Syracuse, NY, 19 degrees F in Florence, SC, and 47 degrees F in Hollywood, FL. Saranac Lake, NY registered -33 degrees F. Farther west, daily-record warmth spread onto the northern Plains, where Thursday's highs reached 56 degrees F in Bismarck, ND and 60 degrees F in Billings, MT. In Minnesota, Rochester notched their first of three daily-record highs (42, 45, and 41 degrees F). A day earlier, daily records had been set in Oregon at Redmond (61 degrees F) and Gold Beach (72 degrees F). By week's end, sharply colder air arrived across the North Central States. By Saturday, lows dipped to -22 degrees F in Glasgow, MT and -30 degrees F in Williston, ND. In Spencer, IA, the temperature plunged from a daily-record high (44 degrees F) at midnight to 12 degrees F just 15 hours later. The cold outbreak followed a record-warm December in Grand Forks, ND, where the average temperature of 23.7 degrees F tied the mark set in 1959. In Glasgow, the mercury failed to fall below 0 degrees F in December for the first time on record, while only 0.01 inch of precipitation fell. Meanwhile, Houghton Lake, MI (0.34 inch) wrapped up their driest December on record. In advance of the Arctic front, record warmth continued and spread eastward. On Friday, daily records were set in locations such as Alpena, MI (50 degrees F), Rapid City, SD (66 degrees F), and Valentine, NE (68 degrees F). A day later, record highs included 49 degrees F in Montpelier, VT, 62 degrees F in Burlington, IA, and 63 degrees F in Quincy, IL. In Wisconsin, Milwaukee's maximum of 54 degrees F on Saturday was their highest since November 1, 1997. A day earlier, Chicago marked their first of four consecutive highs at or above 50 degrees F, only the seventh such occurrence in January during the 125-year period of record. Only light rain fell across the Gulf Coast States during the week. Nevertheless, December 1997 was the wettest on record in Florida at Jacksonville (9.77 inches, 359 percent of normal), Orlando (12.63 inches, 587 percent), and Tampa (15.57 inches, 724 percent). In Texas, the month ranked as the second-wettest December in Waco (8.93 inches) and third-wettest in Dallas-Ft. Worth (6.93 inches). The wet month in Texas capped a year that featured record annual rainfall in Victoria (67.11 inches, 179 percent of normal), and annual precipitation among the 10 greatest on record for the third time this decade in Dallas-Ft. Worth (with 1991 and 1990) and Austin (with 1991 and 1992). Records date to 1898 in Dallas and 1856 in Austin. Farther north, Williamsport, PA received 29.63 inches of precipitation in 1997, 73 percent of normal, their second driest year on record and in sharp contrast to 1996, when the total of 54.01 inches was their second-highest on record. Bitterly cold weather enveloped Alaska (except the southeast), where weekly temperatures ranged from 4 to 18 degrees F below normal. A storm struck the west coast on December 31, dumping 14.0 inches of snow on Nome. In the Aleutians, Cold Bay netted a December-record snowfall of 30.2 inches. Meanwhile in the southeast, Juneau's monthly precipitation of 13.61 inches easily smashed their former December record of 9.89 inches, set in 1956. Note: US level crop conditions are weighted averages based on 1997 planted acres for the selected states. The next "Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin" report will be released at 12 p.m. ET on January 13, 1998. 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