2015 May End Up Wettest Year Here

By H.H. HOWZE

Wet enough for you?

It should be – 2015 is on track to be the wettest year in recorded weather history in La Grange.

As of Monday, this has already been the third wettest year since official records began in 1910.

The wettest year on record locally was 1940 with 59.56 inches; 1981 came close with 59.32 inches. In 104 years the amount of rain for the year has exceeded 50 inches just 13 times.

This year will make 14, as the La Grange area total is already 58.30 inches.

This year is now poised to take first place as the wettest on record if 1.27 of an inch falls between Tuesday and the end of the year.

Significant rain fell last weekend – up to six inches in the Willow Springs area and two to five inches over wide areas of the county. The La Grange gauge tallied 1.87 inches.

Flatonia records go back to 1908, two years earlier than La Grange. Over the years, the southwestern corner of the county has been both wetter and drier than the mid-section.

According to National Weather Service records there have been 16 years there with over 50 inches of rainfall, including 1919 when a whopping 68.74 inches of rain inundated the area.

On the other hand, over the long haul,  that section is marginally drier than the middle part of the county.

The long-term average there is 36.99 inches while in La Grange, the long-term average is almost two inches more – 38.76.