The Morning Blend
Welcome
Complete Media Kit
Herald/Review
SIERRA VISTA -- Hurricanes Octave, Olivia and Marty have played major roles over the last 20 years in causing significant autumn rainfalls in Cochise County, said Steve Bieda, a retired military meteorologist.
"It's not unusual for us to get remnants of hurricanes here. It doesn't happen every year, but it's not unusual," Bieda said.
The storm that has dumped rain on Cochise County the last two days is the result of "a stalled and dying tropical cyclone -- Hurricane Marty," Bieda said Wednesday, adding that the area got more rain than he anticipated.
 Hurricane Marty brought soggy weather Wednesday, including a haze lingering over Bisbee in the afternoon. (Justin Levesque-Herald/Review) |
While Cochise County got a good soaking, most of the rain from Marty fell west of the county, he continued.
Many local residents may recall the wet October of 2000, Bieda said. The moisture that year was caused by three different weather systems, including the remnants of Hurricane Olivia.
Bieda said in early October 2000, more than 2 inches of rain fell, due to a wet weather system. This was followed by more rain on Oct. 19, 2000. This was the remnants of Hurricane Olivia, which poured out 1.68 inches of rain on Sierra Vista.
Then on Oct. 22, a cold weather system brought in more than 3 inches of rain. The result was about 7 inches of total rainfall for October 2000.
Five years earlier, on Oct. 30 1995, the Sierra Vista area received about an inch of rain. But the culprit was not a hurricane.
"It was a different pattern," Bieda said, explaining that an upper level low pressure system caused the rain.
Longtime area residents may recall flooding that occurred in October 1983, when the remnants of Hurricane Octave stalled over the area and caused flooding.
But the rain from Marty and Olivia have done little to relieve the drought cycle that began in 1996, Bieda continued.
"We're so far behind we'd have to get heavy rain for a long time to break the drought," Bieda said. He said drought cycles last 10 years or more.
While drought conditions are continuing, Cochise County Water Conservation Coordinator Carl Robie said all-day, steady rain might be more beneficial for eventual recharge than traditional monsoon storms.
"All precipitation is of some benefit and slow, seeping rains over the entire watershed are of greater benefit than quick local storms that might cause flash flooding and result in lager amounts of runoff. Figuring out how much of the water actually makes it to the water table is much tougher challenge. Water from quick heavy storms rapidly spreads out into washes," Robie said.
Measuring the benefits and amount of water recharging the aquifer has yet to be perfected, he said.
"We have a lot to learn yet about the effect on the water table, or aquifer, of rain that falls on the valley floor. Much is lost to evaporation once the sun returns, and plants consume a good bit of it and transpire it through their leaves," Robie said. "The Upper San Pedro Partnership is working hard to learn the answers to these sorts of questions."
He said water conservation can be accomplished simply by being proactive and suspending unnecessary water jobs, such as running sprinkler systems.
"Rain water is surely the best water source for plants anyway. Good, slow soakers like we've had in the past day or two are great for plants. I certainly hope people avoid pumping water to irrigate on rainy days," Robie said. "In an area like ours, where low average rainfall is the norm and drought such as we have experienced over the last couple of years has hurt us, any rainfall is beneficial."
DIANE SAUNDERS and Nate Searing can be reached at 458-9440. Saunders by e-mail at diane.saunders@svherald.com, and Searing at nate.searing@svherald.com.
nicole ray wrote on Jun 21, 2009 3:35 PM: