We 1 (3-06) Weekly Weather And Crop Bulletin National Agricultural Statistics Service USDA Washington, D.C. Released March 14, 2006, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, U.S. Department of Agriculture. For information on "Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin" call Brian T. Young at (202) 720-7621, office hours 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET. National Weather Summary Volume 93, No. 11 March 5 - 11, 2006 For additional information, call (202) 720-2397. Highlights: Toward week's end, suddenly active weather featured desperately needed rain and snow in the Southwest but catastrophic events in several other areas, including the southern High Plains (high winds, blowing dust, and wildfires) and the lower Midwest and interior South (hail, high winds, tornadoes, and flash flooding). Cool, unsettled weather prevailed across much of the West, where weekly temperatures averaged as much as 10 degrees F below normal. In California's Central Valley, producers continued to assess the effects of recent cold, windy weather on blooming nut trees and other temperature-sensitive crops. In the Southwest, precipitation disrupted travel and caused local flash flooding, but helped to revive drought-ravaged pastures and rangeland. Farther east, however, warm, dry weather diminished prospects for winter wheat recovery on the southern High Plains, where a late-week wind storm raised dust and fanned wildfires that claimed at least a half dozen lives. Drought stress on pastures and winter grains continued to expand across the central High Plains, but locally heavy showers and thunderstorms dampened eastern portions of Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas. Meanwhile, snow boosted topsoil moisture in parts of South Dakota and Nebraska. Elsewhere, the week's first major severe weather outbreak occurred across the South on March 9, when thunderstorms caused widespread wind damage from the southeastern Plains to Alabama, Kentucky, and Tennessee. Later, the March 11-13 outbreak spawned more than 125 tornadoes, according to preliminary reports from the Storm Prediction Center, and killed at least 10 people. Storms also dumped 2 to 6 inches of rain from the southeastern Plains into the Midwest. Early in the week, locally heavy showers lingered in the Midwest and returned to California. Daily-record totals for March 5 included 1.30 inches in Ottumwa, IA, and 2.39 inches in Redding, CA. Another record was set the following day in Mt. Shasta, CA, where 2.29 inches fell, while warmth expanded across the Rockies, Plains, and South. Daily-record highs for March 6 reached 84 degrees F in Roswell, NM, and 67 degrees F in Worland, WY. By March 7, highs reached 80 degrees F as far north as Garden City, KS, and topped 90 degrees F in Childress, TX (91 degrees F). By midweek, widespread rain returned to the Midwest, while strong thunderstorms developed across the South. Cincinnati, OH (1.20 inches), measured a daily-record total for March 8, followed by a record total for March 9 in Muskegon, MI (0.98 inch). Meanwhile, high winds raked the South. On March 9, wind gusts were clocked to 71 m.p.h. at the Air Force Base near Little Rock, AR, and 60 m.p.h. in Bastrop, LA. A day later, non-thunderstorm winds in the Midwestern and Northeastern States gusted to 66 m.p.h. in Erie, PA, and 54 m.p.h. in Indianapolis, IN. Farther west, chilly weather settled across areas from the Rockies westward. Daily-record lows for March 10 included 2 degrees F in Ely, NV, and 28 degrees F in Redding, CA. The next day, records for March 11 were tied or broken in Sacramento, CA (32 degrees F), Whitman Mission, WA (22 degrees F), and Cedar City, UT (6 degrees F). Cedar City's chill followed a tremendous March storm across the Southwest. Approximately 18 inches of snow blanketed Cedar City from March 9-12. Meanwhile, frozen precipitation was reported in some unusual places near the West Coast, including San Francisco's Airport (a trace of sleet on March 11); Olympia, WA (snowfall totaling 0.3 inch from March 8-11); and Portland, OR (snowfall totaling 0.3 inch on March 8-9). Farther south, March 9-12 snowfall in southern California included at least 6 inches near the 5,710-foot summit of Mount Wilson and 18 to 24 inches at the 7,800-foot level near Mount Baldy. Southwestern storminess arrived following a 143-day spell (October 19 - March 10) without a drop of rain in Phoenix, AZ, where 1.44 inches fell on March 11-12. The longest spell with no rain in Phoenix was broken more than a month ago (previously, 101 days from September 23, 1999 - January 1, 2000), but the city's longest streak with no measurable precipitation (160 days from December 30, 1971 - June 6, 1972) remained intact. Elsewhere in Arizona, Flagstaff's season-to-date snowfall climbed from 1.6 inches (2 percent of normal) on March 6 to 32.7 inches (40 percent) on March 12. Most (29.9 inches) of Flagstaff's snow fell from March 10-12, when Arizona totals reached or exceeded 4 feet in locations such as Pinetop and Hart Prairie. The March 11-12 severe weather outbreak, which featured more than 120 tornadoes according to preliminary reports by the Storm Prediction Center, was a record-setting event. The previous 2-day record for tornadoes in March was established on March 19-20, 1976, when 68 tornadoes were documented. Even outside of the tornado-affected areas, high winds caused damage. In Moline, IL, a gust to 107 m.p.h. was measured on March 12. Meanwhile on the southern High Plains, an explosion of wildfires on March 12 charred several hundred thousand acres of grassland and other vegetation. Fires were fanned by winds as high as 73 m.p.h. in Artesia, NM, and 62 m.p.h. near Hart, TX. Elsewhere, dozens of daily-record highs were set from the Plains eastward on March 10-12. On March 10, highs topped 80 degrees F as far north as Richmond, VA (81 degrees F). A day later, records for March 11 in southern Texas included 99 degrees F in McAllen and 96 degrees F in Harlingen. In contrast, daily-record snowfall totals in South Dakota for March 11 included 4.1 inches in Aberdeen and 3.0 inches in Pierre. For the second consecutive week, extremely heavy rain soaked parts of Hawaii. Record-setting rains returned to Kauai, while locally heavy showers dotted the remaining islands. On Kauai's perpetually wet Mt. Waialeale, where March precipitation typically totals 34.70 inches, the weekly rainfall of 30.46 inches was padded by a 23.58-inch sum in a 48-hour period from March 9-11. Mt. Waialeale's 2-week (February 26 - March 11) total climbed to 69.23 inches. Elsewhere on Kauai, Lihue's March 1-11 total of 11.17 inches (873 percent of normal) neared its March 1951 record of 14.54 inches. Lihue also collected a March single-day record total of 5.64 inches on March 11 (previously, 5.15 inches on March 1, 1989). Farther east, Big Island weekly totals of 19.65 inches in in Waiakea Uka and 19.73 inches in Glenwood were padded by 24-hour (March 8-9) amounts of 11.41 and 10.52 inches, respectively. Meanwhile in Alaska, cold, mostly dry weather prevailed. Month-to-date precipitation totals in southern Alaska through March 11 were as low as 0.04 inch (2 percent of normal) in Valdez and 1.55 inches (38 percent) in Yakutat. Weekly temperatures averaged more than 10 degrees F below normal across parts of interior and western Alaska, aided by daily-record lows in locations such as Bettles (-47 degrees F on March 10). National Agricultural Summary March 6 - 12, 2006 Highlights: Temperatures were above normal across the eastern two-thirds of the Nation, from the Great Plains to the Atlantic Coast. Across much of the Great Plains and Mississippi Delta, average temperatures exceeded the normal by 9 degrees Fahrenheit or more. Below-normal temperatures prevailed west of the Rocky Mountains. The Great Plains remained mostly dry, causing continued concerns for the winter wheat crop. Dry conditions also overspread the Atlantic Coast States, but most other regions received some precipitation. Heavy rainfall in the southern Corn Belt hindered fieldwork but boosted soil moisture. Light to moderate precipitation fell across the Mississippi Delta, Southeast, and Rocky Mountains. Heavy precipitation occurred along coastal areas of the Pacific Northwest, but farther inland, only light showers were received. In Georgia, peaches began blooming while corn planting continued. Dry conditions in Florida encouraged corn planting, and vegetable planting and harvesting, but forced some growers to irrigate. Corn and sorghum planting were well underway in Texas, while cotton growers were just starting in southern growing areas. Continued dry conditions have caused one of the worst wildfires in State history, consuming 600,000 acres of mostly grassland and pasture. In Arizona, small grain emergence neared completion, while cotton planting was underway in the western part of the State. A second week of rainfall in California was beneficial for crops but delayed fieldwork in some areas. Citrus harvest continued with good quality and yields. ACCESS TO REPORTS!! 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