SOUTHWEST WEATHER BULLETIN
   National Weather Service El Paso/Santa Teresa 

                   Volume 8 Issue 1 Spring/Summer 2004 
Late Winter and  Early Spring
Storms Bring Relief From Drought
Inside This Issue:

Weather Highlights
pages 1-2

Flash Floods pages 3-4

Tornado detection
 page 5

Damaging Wind 
page 6

2003 Climate Report
page 7


Area manager-
William Alexander

Warning Coordination Meteorologist-
John Fausett

Newsletter Writer-
Joseph Rogash
Senior Forecaster











 Weather Highlights

 The year 2003 went into the record books as the fourth driest year on record  for El Paso, Texas with warm dry conditions also occurring across southwestern New Mexico. After a summer without a monsoon, precipitation remained sparse through the fall and early winter  with the Rio Grande literally drying up by late autumn. 

Relief from the drought began later in the winter when a series of Pacific storms produced widespread rains across the deserts along with mountain snows. During the early spring, slow moving low pressure systems drifted across Arizona and northern Mexico, pulling moisture northward into the southwestern United States. As a result, there was an unusual amount of shower and thunderstorm activity during March and April, months which are normally dry and windy.

Oct 3: Severe thunderstorms strike  southeastern Dona Ana County and western Texas with wind gusts near 60 mph flipping over a mobile home in El Paso.

Oct 4: A small cluster of severe thunderstorms produced hail up to an inch in diameter along with wind gusts near 50 mph over Luna County. The rain and hail forced the closure of Highway 11 while high winds damaged the Aerostat balloon at Deming.

Oct 20: Warm day across the area with El Paso setting a record by reaching 88 degrees.

Oct 30: Smoke from California wildfires drift into the borderland  lowering  visibilities and causing respiratory problems for many residents.
The Rio Grande literally dried up by the late autumn of 2003 as rainfall remained sparse across the region.           ( Photographed by John Fausett)

Nov 1: Unseasonably warm over southern New Mexico and far western Texas with high temperatures between 80 and 85 across the deserts.

Nov 13-14: Much needed rains fall with rainfall amounts from a half-inch to an inch over many locations.

Nov 15: Dense fog develops during the early morning with visibilities under a quarter-mile around El Paso and across southern Dona Ana County.

Nov 22: High winds blow during the afternoon and evening with blowing dust and sand reducing visibilities to under a half-mile in many areas.

Nov 23: Temperatures drop around 20 degrees from the previous day as a strong cold front moves through the Borderland.                             

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