Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Nearly 10 Inches Of Rain Falls In April

It doesn't take a genius to realize April was a wet month in Nevada County.

In fact, according to local weatherman John W. Teeter, the area received almost twice as much rain during the month than normal. He said the usual amount of rain the county gets in April is 5.25 inches. However, this year a whopping 9.28 inches fell, giving the region a 4.30 inch overage.

Additionally, he said, the area is above average for rainfall for the year.

Teeter said the normal amount for this time of the year is 18.53 inches, but 26.37 inches have fallen so far. This means the county is 7.84 inches of rain above normal.

Cale meteorologist Davis Benton concurred with Teeter's findings. He said Cale received 9.85 inches of rain in April, which is about twice the normal amount.

Benton said 26.77 inches of moisture has fallen on Cale so far as well this year.

Teeter said it rained 11 days during the month, with the largest single-day amount being 2.51 inches on April 5.

The average temperature for the month, Teeter said, was 58.3 degrees, six degrees below the normal of 64.3 degrees.

The highest temperature recorded during the month was 85 on April 22, with the lowest, 39 on the 10th and 11th.

Benton said the lowest temperature recorded in Cale for the month was 32 degrees on April 13, with the highest being 82 on April 30th.

Teeter said there were five watches or warnings posted during the month, which is two less than the average of seven.

"The 9.28 inches of rain this April," he said, "is large, but not nearly a record. In April, 1905, 14.15 inches fell. There have been several Aprils with more than 10 inches (of rain) recorded."

And, he continued, the 4.84 inches of moisture falling in the final five days of the month was a lot, but not nearly a record. The record came on Labor Day Weekend in 1974, when 17.11 inches of rain fell from Aug. 26 through April 2.

"Many may remember this as the rain that washed a loaded 18-wheeler from Highway 19 South on the Sandy Creek levee," he said. "Highway 67 South near Emmet was under construction at the time and the Terre Rouge Creek Roadway was washed out."

Teeter said during this rainstorm, county roads were only passable by four-wheel drive trucks or tractors.

During the flood of 1927, he said, there were several three-day periods when more than 10 inches of rain fell.

May, Teeter said, is also a wet month. The average rainfall is 5.28 inches.

The average temperature for the month is 71. degrees.

Additionally, May is the month with the most watches and warnings, on average. Teeter said there are usually eight watches or warnings posted during May.