NORMAN — Friday’s rain wet the ground, but it only whet the county’s appetite.
As of 5:27 p.m. on Friday, the National Weather Center reported that Norman had received 32 hundredths of an inch in rain.
Heath Herje, Oklahoma State University’s extension educator for agriculture in Cleveland County, said this gets the county started when it comes to escaping the ongoing drought.
“You always want to appreciate what you can get,” Herje said. “We’re one step closer to coming out of this drought of epic proportions,” though, he said, “We’re still not out of the woods.”
He said one of his biggest concerns is refilling bodies of water like lakes, wells and, most specifically for those in the agriculture community, livestock ponds.
“I still don’t feel like we’re where we need to be,” Herje said. “Livestock watering ponds are lower than they’ve ever been.”
Reservoirs like Lake Thunderbird are also low, and some ponds and lakes have even dried up.
Though Friday’s rain was helpful, Herje said the area needs a big rainfall event for the lakes, wells and ponds to replenish.
Meteorologist John Pike of the National Weather Service said Norman residents might have to wait a little bit longer for the ponds to refill, as the area can expect low to average precipitation within the next three months.
On Friday afternoon, Pike said Norman was likely to see one more round of thunderstorms followed by a cool front that would push through from the southwest. He said the city was likely to receive thunderstorms throughout the afternoon and perhaps into the evening, though he described the day’s rainfall as scattered, and he said the town would be dry by the evening.
He said the extended outlook is for warmer-than-average temperatures and the area could be a bit dryer than normal, too.
For the weekend, Norman is likely to see high temperatures in the 50s and lows in the 30s, though the climate will be more seasonable.
By Tuesday and Wednesday, Norman has a slight chance for more rain and thunderstorms, as well as a cool front which is expected to pass through at about the same time.
Though this year is shaping up to be slightly wetter than 2011, in which Norman received 27.6 inches of rain, Associate State Climatologist Gary McManus, of the Oklahoma Climate Survey, said the area is still in a moderate drought.
McManus said he’s not as concerned about the drought for the short-term, though, as he is for the long-term. He said today’s scattered rains help, but they’re not going to replenish the area reservoirs.
He said the amount of rain the area receives in the coming months will be the strongest predictor of the summer to come. Despite last year’s continuation of harsh weather from winter to summer, a mild winter does not necessarily mean a mild summer.
As for the rest of this winter season, McManus said the area is likely to see little precipitation, even that of the wintry variety, though he says drastic snowstorms can appear at any time.
Joel Pruett 366-3540 jpruett@normantranscript.com
