June brings historic winds and uneven drought relief

June’s severe weather story was not led by tornadoes, but by straight-line winds. A powerful derecho and several other intense storm events produced six of the Oklahoma Mesonet’s top 50 all-time wind gusts during the month, including three triple-digit readings.

June also brought a much-needed rainfall rebound, finishing as the 16th-wettest June since records began in 1895. That rain helped cut statewide drought coverage from 81% to 53%, but the relief was uneven. The worst drought conditions remained from west-central Oklahoma into the Panhandle, even as much of the eastern two-thirds of the state improved.

Straight-line winds dominate June severe weather

Straight-line winds dominated June severe weather, producing six of the Oklahoma Mesonet’s top 50 all-time wind gusts during the month — the most for any single month since the network was commissioned in January 1994.

The most widespread damage came June 21–22, when a powerful derecho swept across Oklahoma from northwest to southeast. The long-lived, widespread damaging windstorm produced two triple-digit wind gusts at the Hinton Mesonet site, reaching 102 mph and 101 mph, with several other locations recording gusts in the 80s. The Mesonet recorded 54 severe wind gusts of at least 58 mph during the event, including 20 gusts of at least 70 mph and eight of at least 80 mph. The widespread winds damaged trees, power lines, homes and farm infrastructure, knocked out power to tens of thousands of customers, and contributed to a BNSF train derailment near Woodward that affected both main tracks. The damage path extended from the High Plains of Kansas to southwestern Arkansas.

June’s historic wind gusts were not limited to the derecho. A June 25 severe storm in the Oklahoma Panhandle produced a 101 mph gust at Boise City, while Eva recorded a 96 mph gust on June 13 and Breckinridge recorded a 96 mph gust on June 26. The Hinton, Boise City, Eva and Breckinridge gusts all ranked among the Mesonet’s top 25 all-time wind gusts.

The two Hinton gusts ranked as the 10th and 12th strongest measured by the Mesonet, while the Boise City gust ranked 11th. The Eva and Breckinridge gusts ranked 22nd and 23rd, respectively, and an 89 mph gust at Freedom during the derecho ranked 50th. The all-time list is topped by the 151 mph gust at El Reno during a close encounter with an EF5 tornado on May 24, 2011.

June rains bring drought relief, but not everywhere

The statewide average rainfall total finished at 6.68 inches, 2.42 inches above normal, ranking as the 16th-wettest June since records began in 1895. Rainfall totals ranged from a high of 16.01 inches at Idabel to 1.40 inches at Goodwell. Sixty-two of the Mesonet’s 120 sites recorded at least 6 inches of rain, and 19 of those sites had at least 10 inches. More than 40 Mesonet sites finished at least 2 inches above normal for June, with about 20 exceeding 4 inches and roughly a dozen topping 6 inches. Idabel led the state with a surplus of 11.9 inches. 

The wet pattern was not universal, however. A concentrated area of deficits stretched from west-central into southwestern Oklahoma and south of the Oklahoma City metro area. Those deficits were generally around a half-inch to an inch, although a few sites exceeded the inch mark.

The abundant rainfall brought significant drought relief to the eastern two-thirds of the state, with drought coverage dropping from 81% of Oklahoma on May 26 to 53% on June 23, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. Severe-to-exceptional drought also declined from 47% to 42%, while extreme-to-exceptional drought fell from 37% to 29%. The worst conditions remained from west-central and central Oklahoma northwestward into the Panhandle, however, and exceptional drought increased from 4% to 7% of the state. 

June by the numbers

• Statewide average temperature: 79.1°F, 1.8°F above normal — 27th-warmest June since 1895
• Temperature extremes: High of 107°F at Hollis on June 17; low of 51°F at Eva and Kenton on June 12
• Highest heat index: 113°F at Cherokee and Fairview on June 8
• 100-degree temperatures: 95 observations recorded at the 120 Oklahoma Mesonet sites
• 100-degree heat index values: 1,340 observations, including 334 at or above 105°F
• Warmest and coolest locations: Highest monthly average, 83.3°F at Grandfield; lowest, 74.4°F at Kenton
• Statewide average precipitation: 6.68 inches, 2.42 inches above normal — 16th-wettest June since 1895
• Rainfall extremes: High of 16.01 inches at Idabel; low of 1.40 inches at Goodwell
• Rainfall totals of 5 inches or more: 78 Mesonet sites, including 35 at or above 8 inches and 19 at or above 10 inches

July outlook favors heat, western drought persistence

The Climate Prediction Center’s July outlook favors above-normal temperatures across Oklahoma, while the precipitation outlook shows equal chances of above-, below- or near-normal rainfall statewide. That leaves drought recovery uncertain heading deeper into summer. The monthly drought outlook keeps drought in place across much of western Oklahoma, including the Panhandle and west-central areas where the worst conditions remained at the end of June. Farther east, where June rainfall brought widespread improvement and drought removal, the outlook shows little additional drought concern.