KANSAS DROUGHT REPORT AND CLIMATE SUMMARY
Current Conditions, Drought Impacts and Outlook
May 2010
Cold start, warm
finish to the month of May
It wasn’t until the
end of May that warmer temperatures prevailed. Freezing
temperatures were seen in the Northwest and West Central
National Weather Service climate divisions as late as the 13th
of May. Only one record daily high was set, while 43 locations
set record low daily highs. Diurnal variation was also low, as
44 locations set record warm low temperatures.
Statewide
temperatures averaged 61.9o F or 1.7 degrees cooler
than Normal. It ranks as the 34th coolest May from
1895 to present. Temperatures at or below freezing were seen in
the western third of the state, as well as in the central
climate division. Temperatures below freezing were seen as late
as the May 13th, when Brewster recorded a 26o
F low.
Preliminary
statewide average precipitation was 4.06 inches, which was 102%
of normal. Amounts varied from division to division, depending
upon the track of the individual storms. The severe storm season
continued to show strong activity. Preliminary reports show 44
tornadoes in Kansas during May. This was coupled with 178
reports of damaging hail and 94 reports of damaging wind.
Preliminary data indicates the greatest monthly precipitation
from a National Weather Service COOP site was 10.26 inches at
Walnut 3S in Crawford County. The greatest monthly precipitation
total from the CoCoRaHS network was also in Crawford County with
11.01 inches at Farlington 0.8 NNE.
With the near normal
to above normal rains, conditions have improved so that the
latest Drought Monitor has all of Kansas in near normal
conditions. The latest Drought Outlook does not indicate
expectation of developing drought conditions. The El Niño has
faded, and La Niña conditions are expected to develop.
The latest
Kansas Drought Report and Climate Summary - June 2010 provides additional details. This Report
is updated
monthly (first Friday or thereabouts) throughout the year. Archived
reports from
2007 through 2009 are also available:
5/2010
4/2010,
3/2010,
2/2010,
1/2010,
12/2009,
11/2009,
10/2009,
9/2009,
8/2009,
7/2009,
6/2009,
5/2009,
4/2009,
3/2009,
2/2009,
1/2009,
12/2008,
11/2008,
10/2008,
9/2008,
8/2008,
7/2008,
6/2008,
5/2008,
4/2008, 3/2008,
2/8/2008,
1/8/2008,
12/7/2008,
11/7/2007,
10/7/2007,
9/5/2007, 8/7/2007,
7/6/2007,
6/6/2007
, 5/5/2007,
4/4/2007,
3/6/2007,
2/2/2007.
Drought Preparedness and Response
The Kansas
Water Office has the statutory responsibility to monitor
conditions and inform the Governor when drought conditions are
present in the state. The Director of the Kansas Water Office
serves as Chair of the Governor’s Drought Response Team, an
interagency group charged with coordinating drought response
activities in Kansas. An
Operations Plan details Team membership and response
activities keyed to each of three county drought stages: Drought
Watch, Drought Warning and Drought Emergency.
The following publications provide
additional information regarding drought preparedness and
response in Kansas.
Drought
Related Links - Additional information regarding current drought
conditions, forecasts, available assistance, drought planning,
and more is available through these links.
