Lots of Rain in 20 Minutes

We were driving along Highway 136 just outside of Bethany, MO (I-35) when we saw a beautiful, fast moving thunderstorm heading our way on Friday, June 19. No sooner did I have the camera back in the car that it started to rain ... and it sure did rain! It rained hard enough that most cars had pulled off the side of the road. The local radio station later reported that it had rained 1.25" of rain in just 20 minutes! I don't think I have ever seen it rain that quick and that hard before. Absolutely fascinating!

Dry Spell

We've set a record for consecutive dry days in 2009 ... seven days and counting! Ironic that it's the wettest time of the year (May 15-June 15) and we're so dry. Yet it's equally amazing that there are still parts of my yard that have small puddles from last weekend! Amazing.

Lone Line of Rain

That's one long line of thunderstorms across the mid-section of the United States! Yesterday's storms blossomed in the Midwest and then eventually grew to span from Texas to Michigan! In our neck of the woods, it was mostly a rain event dumping around 3" of rain in a short period of time. Our rain gutters couldn't keep up and there were lakes and rivers in the yard. It's fascinating to watch it suddenly just dump a downpour of rain ... then stop ... then dump again as if someone were turning on a spicket. Now we just need some sunshine to dry out for a few days.

Where's the Dew Points?

They say that the good storms in the Midwests require all the right ingredients to produce some real doozies. Tonight had all the makings for a good storm ... except the dew points. Weather down in the South today was keep the dew points at bay up here in the Midwest. Otherwise, the couple of thunder-bumpers that rattled through would have been sending us to the basement. Da'd blast it! Maybe next time ...

Spring [Snow] Storm ???

There's a spring snowstorm in the making ... Kansas City has only had a few inches of snow total this season and here we are, a few days into spring and it looks like we're going to more than double that amount in one shot! Even though it's a weekend storm, all kinds of places are shutting down in advance of this major storm. Even the Olathe Marathon that I was going to run in tomorrow has been postponed. Who would have thought? Forecasters have actually toned down the amount we're suppose to receive ... more on that tomorrow.

Going Out with a Bang!

They say that the severe weather season is winding down for 2008 ... but if it is, it's not going quietly! We had a wild night with wind, torrential rain, and a quick trip to the basement when a tornado warning sent the sirens a blaring. No damage here but a local tv station had a chopper in the air just south of our home and you could see the power lines exploding as they were hit by a small tornado. Number of tornadoes in Kansas this year thus far? 172 ... No.1 in the nation! There was a pretty rainbow when the evening's storms had passed.

Sunday Storm

The weather radio was busy Sunday afternoon with severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings in the area. In the end, there wasn't any damage outside of a lot of rain, some spectacular lightning, and a photo opportunity.