Burn bans currently in effect
So, it’s a good news bad news situation if you were hoping to start any fires outside anytime soon in Tulsa County.
The good news is that Gov. Mary Fallin
lifted the statewide burn ban for 22 counties that went into effect Aug. 3. The bad, well more disappointing than bad, news is that Tulsa County initiated a county-wide burn ban effective between now and next Monday.
I guess it’s still disappointing news if you are in one of the 55 counties still under a state burn ban. Sorry bout that.
So, what changed for those 22 counties? Rain! Like, prolonged periods of beneficial rainfall for several parts of the state!
To make sure I got all of it, here are the rainfall totals across the state for the last seven days. The seven-day winner is… Jay! with 3.8 inches of rain. But, in the last seven days, each of the Oklahoma Mesonet stations recorded at least some rainfall.
The rain was associated with some cold fronts that came through the area, breaking that summertime heat and bringing much-needed relief. Where September has had above-average temperatures for much of the month, with highs above 100 five days this month, the past three days have had high temps about 10 degrees below average in Tulsa.
And while our rainfall wasn’t nearly as impressive as Jay’s, Tulsa did get 0.58 inches on Friday and Saturday, with drizzly weather Thursday and Sunday that recorded a trace at Tulsa International Airport. It brings our monthly total to 0.69 inches. That’s 1.57 inches below normal for the month.
But, what we saw this weekend was a real, tangible preview of fall. It was absolutely wonderful.
It’s too early to say that fall weather is here to stay, though the highs through next week
will stay in the mid-80s and 70s. But the first actual day of fall, the autumnal equinox, is on Saturday. So, the likelihood of 100 or even 90 degree days is diminishing every day. Being Oklahoma and 2012, some more hot days are not out of the realm of possibility yet.
--Jerry Wofford
