We 1 (1-07) Weekly Weather And Crop Bulletin National Agricultural Statistics Service USDA Washington, D.C. Released January 3, 2007, 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 94, No. 1 December 24 - 30, 2006 For additional information, call (202) 720-2397. Highlights: For the second time in little more than a week, a sprawling winter storm blasted the central High Plains and adjacent Rockies with wind-driven snow, further improving winter wheat prospects but severely stressing livestock and causing renewed travel disruptions. The improbable one-two storm punch (on December 19-21 and 28-31) contributed to the eradication of several December precipitation and snowfall records across the nation's mid-section. The storm also had far-reaching effects elsewhere. In the Northwest, however, wet weather yielded to cool, favorably dry conditions after mid-week. Farther south, beneficial rain and snow showers briefly dampened southern California and the Four Corners States, although high winds buffeted some areas. Meanwhile, snow and freezing rain blanketed parts of the Plains and the upper Midwest, but rain returned to the soggy eastern Corn Belt. Corn Belt soils remained largely unfrozen, and weekly air temperatures averaged at least 20 degrees F above normal at several upper Midwestern locations. Elsewhere, locally severe thunderstorms developed across the eastern Texas on December 29 and swept into the southern Atlantic region by New Year's Eve. Strong thunderstorm winds in the southern Atlantic States came less than a week after several tornadoes hit Florida on Christmas Day. Farther west, at least 4 inches of rain soaked areas from eastern Texas to the lower Mississippi Valley, causing local flooding. In advance of a cold front, early-week warmth in Florida resulted in daily-record highs for December 24 in locations such as Naples (85 degrees F) and Tampa (83 degrees F). Meanwhile, Apalachicola, FL, netted 3.36 inches of rain, a record sum for December 24. A day later, however, several Christmas Day tornadoes--including an F2 twister (estimated winds of 113 to 157 m.p.h.) in Volusia County--ripped across northern and central Florida. Elsewhere in the East, it was the wettest Christmas Day on record in many locations, including Tallahassee, FL (3.72 inches); Augusta, GA (2.21 inches); Florence, SC (2.20 inches); and Raleigh-Durham, NC (1.51 inches). Farther west, record warmth briefly appeared across the Southwest in advance of a developing storm. Daily-record highs included 85 degrees F (on December 25) in Riverside, CA, and 76 degrees F (on December 27) in Lubbock, TX. Cool weather soon returned, however, to California, where daily-record lows dipped to 28 degrees F (on December 28) in Eureka and 31 degrees F (on December 29) in Santa Barbara. In contrast, Des Moines, IA (58 degrees F on December 29), posted a daily-record high. Wet weather arrived in the West Coast States on December 25, when record rainfall totals for the date reached 4.36 inches in Crescent City, CA, and 2.09 inches in Roseburg, OR. By December 27, daily-record totals across the interior West included 0.62 inch in Cedar City, UT; 0.51 inch in Pocatello, ID; and 0.27 inch in Great Falls, MT. Great Falls also noted a daily-record snowfall of 4.4 inches, while at least a foot of snow blanketed Cedar City on December 27-28. Farther east, significant ice accumulations were noted in a long swath stretching roughly from the southern High Plains northeastward into the upper Midwest, while heavy snow fell from the southern Rockies to the northern Plains. Power outages were common in the ice-glazed areas, while major travel disruptions occurred in both the snow- and ice-affected regions. With an 11.3-inch total, December 29 was the snowiest day on record in Albuquerque, NM (previously, 10.0 inches on December 15, 1959). Albuquerque's monthly snowfall climbed to 20.8 inches, second only to a 23.7-inch total in December 1959. Elsewhere in New Mexico, Clayton received 29.5 inches of snow from December 28-30, while unofficial storm totals reached 58 inches at the Angel Fire Ski Resort and 31 inches at Red River. In neighboring Colorado, Denver's two-storm total climbed to 27.7 inches. In addition, Denver experienced its third-snowiest December (29.4 inches, or 338 percent of normal) behind 57.4 inches in 1913 and 30.8 inches in 1973. Cheyenne, WY, set a December snowfall record (24.4 inches), edging its 1913 standard of 21.4 inches. Meanwhile in Kansas, Dodge City weathered its second-wettest December storm (3.21 inches from December 28-31, behind only 4.31 inches from December 19-22, 1877). Approximately 1 inch of Dodge City's precipitation fell in the form of freezing rain, followed by a 0.3-inch snowfall on December 31. Dodge City had received 1.05 inches of liquid from the December 19-21 storm, resulting in the city's first occurrence since 1918 of two 1-inch events in December. Elsewhere in Kansas, Goodland (16.9 inches of snow on December 29) experienced its third-snowiest day behind 19.3 inches on October 25, 1997, and 17.9 inches on February 27, 1939. Farther north, December 29-30 snowfall included 8.2 inches in North Platte, NE, and 11.3 inches in Bismarck, ND. Farther south, severe thunderstorms across eastern Texas on December 29 spawned at least 10 tornadoes and caused one fatality (in Limestone County). Like the earlier Florida twister, the Limestone County tornado--which featured a damage path length of about 17 miles--was categorized as an F2. At week's end, daily-record rainfall totals for December 30 included 4.11 inches in Lake Charles, LA, and 3.61 inches in Jackson, MS. The year ended on a chilly note across mainland Alaska, with weekly temperatures as much as 10 degrees F below normal across western parts of the State. Cold Bay opened the week with consecutive daily-record lows (4 and 5 degrees F) on December 24-25. Meanwhile, wet conditions persisted across the State's southern tier, accompanied by mild weather in southeastern Alaska. Monthly snowfall climbed to 36.9 inches (241 percent of normal) in Anchorage, the fourth-highest December total on record there behind 41.6 inches in 1955 and 37.6 inches in both 1998 and 2003. Elsewhere in southern Alaska, Valdez experienced its snowiest 15-day period on record in December, with 84.3 inches falling during the last 15 days of the year. The previous record of 82.6 inches was set in December 1991. Farther south, the year ended on a quiet note in Hawaii, although locally heavy, mid- to late-week showers dotted the western islands. Nevertheless, December rainfall totaled just 0.59 inch (12 percent of normal) in Lihue, Kauai, and 0.58 inch (20 percent) in Honolulu, Oahu. National Agricultural Summary December 25 - 31, 2006 Highlights: Average temperatures were above normal nearly nationwide, reaching over 9 degrees Fahrenheit above normal across the Corn Belt. Nevertheless, low temperatures for the week were below 20 degrees across much of the western half of the Nation. Snow cover was much more widespread in these areas than last week, but many locations in the western Corn Belt and central Great Plains had just 1 inch of snow depth. Heavy precipitation fell in coastal areas of the Pacific Northwest, with lighter precipitation in the crop-producing areas further inland. Heavy rainfall in the Mississippi Delta dropped off to moderate precipitation in neighboring areas of the Southeast and southern Great Plains. Mostly dry conditions prevailed in the Southwest, northern Great Plains, Corn Belt, Ohio River Valley, and middle and northern Atlantic Coast States, with most areas receiving less than an inch of precipitation. Rainfall in California was beneficial for newly planted and emerging crops but disrupted citrus harvest. Some navel orange growers were using wind machines to minimize frost damage. In Arizona, small grain planting was active, and cotton harvest was virtually complete. 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