Hollister
– There might have been enough rain to ruin your Saturday
picnic, but the weather system that moved through San Benito County
over the weekend didn’t deliver the promised drenching.
Hollister – There might have been enough rain to ruin your Saturday picnic, but the weather system that moved through San Benito County over the weekend didn’t deliver the promised drenching.
Forecasters had predicted a good soaking over the weekend, but only .28 inches of rain fell in Hollister between Friday and Monday morning, according to the National Weather Service. That’s also the sum total of rain received so far this month.
Coming on the heels of a record-low rainfall total in January, Hollister remains drier than normal. Hollister received just .18 inches of rain last month. January is normally the rainiest month of the year, averaging 2.86 inches.
Hollister usually receives an inch or more of rain during the first two weeks of February. For the month, the average rainfall measures 2.71 inches.
Since the start of the rain year on July 1, Hollister has received just 1.99 inches of precipitation. Normally by this time of year, the city would have seen 8.33 inches of rain, according to weather service records.
And meteorologist Steve Anderson said things aren’t likely to change soon. A ridge of high pressure off the coast – which he said pushed storms to the north through most of January – is returning.
“The high pressure coming back (today) will keep us dry for the week,” Anderson said.
Anderson said that despite minimal rainfall totals, it’s too soon to worry about drought. There would need to be low rain levels for several years for a drought declaration.
Last year’s rain season actually saw higher levels of rainfall than average, with a total of 15.8 inches, 4.27 inches of which fell in January alone. Hollister averages 13.61 inches of rain annually.
Alice Joy covers education for the Free Lance. She can be reached at 637-5566 ext. 336 or at
aj**@fr***********.com
.
