National Weather Service Text Product Display

Drought Information Statement
Issued by NWS Corpus Christi, TX
Versions: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
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AXUS74 KCRP 230343
DGTCRP
TXZ229>234-239>247-342>347-442-443-447-300345-

Drought Information Statement
National Weather Service Corpus Christi TX
1043 PM CDT Sat May 22 2021

...Great Improvements in Drought Across Coastal Bend...

...Moderate (D1) to Extreme (D3) Drought Conditions Continue
Generally Near and West of Highway 16...

...Final La Nina Advisory Issued with ENSO-Neutral Conditions
Returning...


.SYNOPSIS...

With multiple heavy rain events across South Texas, great
improvements have been taking place over the past couple of
months. Much of the Coastal Bend and northern Brush Country are no
longer in drought. Extreme Drought (D3) covers most of Webb
County with the exception of a sliver of Severe Drought (D2) in
far northwestern Webb County. D3 conditions extend into far
southwestern La Salle County as well as far southwestern Duval
County. Severe Drought (D2) extends from Extreme Drought east to
the far northwest corner of La Salle County southwest through
eastern portions of Webb County and into southwestern portions of
Duval County, near and west of Realitos and Ramirez. East of this
area exists Moderate Drought (D1) from near the center of the
northern boundary of La Salle County, southeast clipping the
southwestern portion of McMullen County, southeast bisection Duval
County from northwest to southeast, staying near and west of FM
339. Additional Moderate Drought exists in far northern portions
of Goliad County. Outside of these areas, Abnormally Dry (D0) or
no drought exists.

.SUMMARY OF IMPACTS...

WATER RESTRICTIONS

Best practices for Water Conservation:
1. Only water landscapes to maintain adequate soil moisture.
2.Only water lawn if rainfall has not fallen in 1-2 weeks.
3. Use a sprinkler which makes larger water droplets.
4. Turn sprinklers toward the lawn and not the pavement.
5. Avoid watering on windy days.
6. Turn soaker hoses holes downward, facing the grass.

CORPUS CHRISTI - Stage 1 Drought Restrictions.
Limit irrigation to 1 time per week.

http://www.cctexas.com/conservation
http://portlandtx.com
http://inglesidetx.gov

The city of Corpus Christi draws its water from both Lake Corpus
Christi and Choke Canyon Reservoir. When the combined water
capacity of both of these reservoirs falls below 40%, Stage 1 in
water restrictions begin. To exit Stage 1 restrictions, the
combined capacity much reach above 50%. The current combination
capacity as of May 22, 2021 is 46.3%.

VICTORIA  Stage 1 Drought Restrictions; however, keep an eye on
local news for any updates.

www.victoriatx.org/CivicAlerts.aspx?sort=date
www.victoriatx.org

The city of Victoria draws its water from the Guadalupe River as
well as Canyon Lake upstream along the Guadalupe River. When the
Victoria USGS (United States Geological Survey) river gauge on the
Guadalupe falls below normal, Stage 1 in water restrictions begin.
As of May 22, 2021, the Guadalupe River is much above normal.

LAREDO  No restrictions.
http://www.cityoflaredo.com/utilities/water-conservation.html

The city of Laredo draws its water from the Amistad Reservoir located
along the Rio Grande. When the water capacity of the reservoir
reaches and falls below 51%, Stage 1 in water restrictions begin.
The current capacity as of May 22, 2021 is 51.8%.

For other public water systems (PWS) which may have water use limits
for the locals: www.tceq.texas.gov/drinkingwater/trot/droughtw.html

Locations that do not currently have mandatory restrictions
continue to strongly promote year-round water conservation.

SOIL MOISTURE IMPACTS.

As of May 21, 2021, the Climate Prediction Center (CPC) analyzes
the percent of available soil moisture as normal across most areas
generally west of Interstate-37, with near normal east of
Interstate-37. The available soil moisture ranges from 70 to 80
percent east of Interstate-37 with values of 30 to 70 percent west
of Interstate-37.

AGRICULTURAL IMPACTS

Texas Crop and Weather Report from Texas A&M AgriLife as of:
May 19, 2021

Coastal Bend Region:
- Multiple rounds of beneficial rain fell across the Coastal Bend
- Conditions in some fields are still too wet to apply fertilizer
- Some producers who applied fertilizer before the wetting rains
  should be doing well right now
- Some areas reported up to 8 inches of rain
- Cotton and grain sorghum yield potentials improved
- Rangelands and pastures started greening and growing and were
  much improved compared to the last reporting period
- Livestock were doing well, but prices were disappointing

South Region:
- Soil moisture conditions remained very short to short
- Crops were still growing but needed rain
- Cotton planting continued
- Corn was in the silking stage
- La Salle County reported 100-plus degree days
- Cattle prices remained low
- Stock tanks were low
- Ranchers with minimal forage for grazing were culling cattle
  herds before the hot summer month

FIRE DANGER HAZARDS.

Fire Danger Map  May 22, 2021
According to the latest Observed Fire Danger Map from the Texas
Interagency Coordination Center (TICC), LOW fire danger covers
most of South Texas, with the exception of MODERATE across
southern portions of Duval and Webb Counties.

Keetch-Bryam Drought Index (KBDI)
KBDI is an index used to determine forest fire potential, which
is based on a daily water balance considering precipitation and
soil moisture. The KBDI can range from 0 to 800, where a value of
0 represents no moisture depletion, and 800 would be
representative of absolutely dry conditions. A KBDI between 600
and 800 is often associated with severe drought and increased
wildfire potential.

The following table lists the KBDI for counties across the region
as of May 22, 2021.

0-200     300-400     400-500
Aransas   La Salle    Webb
Bee
Calhoun
Duval
Goliad
Jim Wells
Kleberg
Live Oak
McMullen
Nueces
Refugio
San Patricio
Victoria

Burn Bans
Texas Forest Service Burn Ban Map - May 22, 2021
County-wide burn bans across South Texas
Note: Nueces County website has removed the burn ban as of May 21

CURRENT BURN BANS     NO BURN BANS
Duval                 Aransas
Jim Wells             Bee
Kleberg               Calhoun
La Salle              Goliad
Refugio               Live Oak
                      McMullen
                      Nueces
                      San Patricio
                      Victoria
                      Webb


CLIMATE SUMMARY...

Climate Prediction Center  May 13, 2021
ENSO (El-Nino/Southern Oscillation) Alert System Status: Final La
Nina Advisory

The tropical Pacific Ocean returned to ENSO-Neutral during April.
Sea surface temperatures (SSTs) were near-to-below average across
most of the equatorial Pacific Ocean. Overall, the ocean and
atmospheric system reflected a return to ENSO-Neutral. Most
computer models continue to predict ENSO-Neutral conditions to
persist through Northern Hemisphere summer 2021 (67% chance in
June-August 2021). La Nina chances are around 50-55% during the
late fall and winter; however, there is typically large
uncertainty with forecast made in the spring, so confidence in
ENSO-Neutral for the coming seasons is highest.

South Texas Summary  May 2021

Much needed and beneficial rain fell across South Texas through
the first 3 full weeks of May, with the biggest winner generally
near and east of Highway 281. The first main event occurred at the
end of April through May 1. A quasi-stationary front combined with
deep moisture maintained showers and thunderstorms across the
Coastal Bend for much of May 1, with a secondary line of storms
that moved west across the Brush Country during the afternoon
hours. Nearly 2 to 4 inches fell east of I-37, with isolated
amounts up to 8 inches closer to the coast. West of I-37, rainfall
amounts of less than 1 inch fell. The next rain maker involved
another approaching front and mid-level disturbance from May 10 to
May 11. Most of the activity originated west across northeastern
Mexico that moved east over South Texas. Strong to severe storms
with hail and gusty winds also occurred. On average, 1 to 2 inches
of rain fell across most areas generally near and west of I-37. A
few locations observed up to 4 inches. The next rainfall events
happened pretty back-to-back that stretched over a 5-day period.
This was mainly due to a mid-level trough that slowly moved east
across the Desert Southwest and settled across the southern High
Plains, leading to multiple impulses that swept across the state
of Texas. This combined with persistent onshore flow drawing in
deep moisture over the region, as well as daily heating, led to
multiple rounds of heavy rainfall which led to periods of flash
flooding across the region. Several of the storms that developed
became strong to severe, with hail and gusty winds. It was during
this 5-day period that South Texas saw the much-needed rainfall it
has so desperately needed over the past year. With the exception
of nearly 1 to 3 inches across La Salle and Webb County, the rest
of South Texas observed storm totals of 4 to 8 inches, with
Calhoun, Victoria, Aransas, Refugio, and Kleberg Counties even
observing amounts up to 10 to 12 inches. It is with all this rain
that great improvements in the drought conditions were made.

The following table as of May 21 shows:
1. Monthly rainfall totals (deficits/surplus) in inches
2. Year-to-date rainfall totals (deficits/surplus) for 2021 in inches
3. Average monthly temperatures (departure from normal) in degrees F


CLIMATE SITE        MAY             2021            MAY AVG TEMPS
CORPUS CHRISTI    10.01  ( 7.80)   15.92  ( 6.71)    76.0 (-2.0)
VICTORIA          16.56  (13.02)   23.80  ( 9.63)    75.4 (-0.7)
LAREDO             1.82  (-0.02)    2.95  (-3.69)    81.0 ( 0.3)

PRECIPITATION/TEMPERATURE OUTLOOK...

Local forecast through the next 7 days (MAY 23  MAY 29):
Chances for showers and thunderstorms will continue daily from
May 23 through May 25, especially across the Coastal Bend and
Victoria Crossroads. Due to heavily saturated soils from previous
rain events, even small amounts of additional rain may lead to
localized flooding.

CPC outlook for days 8-14 (MAY 30  JUN 05):
Below normal temperatures with equal chances of above, near, or
below normal precipitation.

CPC outlook for 1 month (JUN):
Equal chances for above, near, or below normal temperatures.
Slightly above normal precipitation for areas generally east of
Interstate-35, with equal chances for above, near, or below normal
precipitation west of Interstate-35.

CPC outlook for 3 months (JUN  AUG):
Above to well above normal temperatures. Equal chances for above,
near, or below normal precipitation.

Monthly Drought Outlook (MAY):
Drought conditions to persist across the Brush Country, with
improvements across the Coastal Bend.

Seasonal Drought Outlook (MAY 20  AUG 31):
Drought conditions across the Brush Country to remain, but show
improvements.

HYDROLOGIC SUMMARY AND OUTLOOK...

USGS Streamflow Map  May 22, 2021.
Most rivers and creeks are running at or above normal. In fact,
many are reporting much above normal or high levels due to recent
heavy rains. Only one location, Nueces River at Mathis, is
reporting much below normal flow.

The following table shows the current reservoir levels as of:
May 22, 2021

Reservoir            Normal Pool    Current Pool    % of Capacity
Choke Canyon          220.5 FT      201.2 FT          41.4%
Lake Corpus Christi    94.0 FT       88.1 FT          59.0%
Lake Texana            44.0 FT       44.0 FT         100.0%
Coleto Creek           98.0 FT       97.7 FT          N/A
Canyon Lake*          909.0 FT      904.0 FT          N/A
Lake Amistad**       1117.0 FT     1067.3 FT          N/A

* Supplies the city of Victoria
** Along Rio Grande, upstream of Laredo

Combined               Current Pool %   Last Year %   Difference
Choke Canyon/Lake CC      46.3%           49.9%         -3.6%

Welcomed rain finally fell in the Nueces River and Frio River
Watersheds with reservoir levels rising. Additional rainfall is
expected in the coming days, but is not expected to be as
widespread as the events that occurred so far through May 2021.
Hopefully we will see some more improvements.

NEXT ISSUANCE DATE...

The next drought statement will be issued on or near June 5,
2021. If drought conditions worsen or greatly improve, an update
may be provided at an earlier date.

RELATED WEB SITES...

NWS CORPUS CHRISTI DROUGHT PAGE:
https://www.weather.gov/crp/drought

Advanced Hydrologic Prediction Service (AHPS):
https://water.weather.gov/precip

U.S. Drought Monitor:
http://droughtmonitor.unl.edu

U.S. Drought Portal:
https://www.drought.gov

Texas Water Development Board Drought Website:
http://www.waterdatafortexas.org/drought/

Texas A&M AgriLife Crop and Weather Reports:
http://today.agrilife.org

Texas Burn Bans:
http://tfsfrp.tamu.edu/wildfires/decban.png

Texas KBDI:
http://twc.tamu.edu

Texas Observed and Forecast Fire Danger:
http://ticc.tamu.edu/PredictiveServices/FuelsFireDanger.htm

Additional River Information:
USGS: http://water.usgs.gov
IBWC: http://ibwc.gov


Acknowledgments...
The drought monitor is a multi-agency effort involving the
National Weather Service and National Centers for Environmental
Information, the USDA, state and regional center climatologists
and the National Drought Mitigation Center. Information for
this statement has been gathered from NWS and FAA
observation sites, state cooperative extension services,
the USDA, USACE and USGS.

QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS...
If you have any questions of comments about this drought
information statement, please contact...
National Weather Service
426 Pinson Drive
Corpus Christi TX 78406
Phone: 361-289-0959
sr-crp.webmaster@noaa.gov

$$

CB
National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office
