ZCZC LAXSPSLAX TTAA00 KLAX 011613 CAZ026>062-011615- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OXNARD CA 900 AM PDT WED JUL 1 1998 ...EL NINO BRINGS 231 PERCENT OF NORMAL RAINFALL TO SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA... IN THE SUMMER OF 1997 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BEGAN ALERTING THE PUBLIC AND ALL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCIES OF A DEVELOPING EL NINO THAT WOULD ULTIMATELY AFFECT THE WEATHER ACROSS MUCH OF THE WORLD...INCLUDING THE UNITED STATES. FORECASTERS WERE HESITANT TO QUANTIFY SPECIFIC EFFECTS OF EL NINO...BUT AS EARLY AS AUGUST 1997 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PREDICTED UP TO 200 PERCENT OF NORMAL RAINFALL ACROSS SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA FOR THE WINTER OF 1997-1998. FORECASTERS PREDICTED THE EFFECTS OF EL NINO WOULD BE FELT ACROSS SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA DURING JANUARY THROUGH MARCH 1998. THESE INITIAL PREDICTIONS WERE MADE AS MUCH AS 6 MONTHS IN ADVANCE. AFTER A VERY DRY FALL 1997...SKEPTICS SURFACED...SERIOUSLY QUESTIONING WHETHER OR NOT EL NINO WOULD AFFECT SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA AS FORECAST. HOWEVER...BEGINNING IN THE MIDDLE OF JANUARY 1998...THE STEADY RAINS ARRIVED. A SERIES OF EXTREMELY HEAVY RAINSTORMS POUNDED CALIFORNIA IN FEBRUARY 1998. AS EL NINO LINGERED... THE REMAINDER OF THE WINTER CONTINUED WET...WITH SEVERAL COLD WINTER STORMS IN MARCH AND EVEN MAY. RAINFALL TOTALS ACROSS SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA FOR THE WATER YEAR (JULY 1997 THROUGH JUNE 1998) WERE UNDENIABLY DRAMATIC. THE AVERAGE OF 50 SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA SITES FROM SAN LUIS OBISPO TO SAN DIEGO COUNTY RECORDED 231 PERCENT OF NORMAL RAINFALL FOR THE WATER YEAR. THE MAJORITY OF THIS RAINFALL OCCURRED FROM FEBRUARY THROUGH MAY 1998. SOME OF THE LOCATIONS THAT RECORDED THE HIGHEST ABOVE NORMAL RAINFALL PERCENTAGES FOR THE WATER YEAR INCLUDED: PT. MUGU 303% OF NORMAL 31.81 INCHES (SEASONAL TOTAL) VENTURA 298% OF NORMAL 42.70 INCHES LAKE CACHUMA 285% OF NORMAL 53.39 INCHES SANTA BARBARA 277% OF NORMAL 46.99 INCHES THE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA SITE WITH THE MAXIMUM RAINFALL THIS WATER YEAR WAS SAN MARCOS PASS WHERE 73.87 INCHES OF RAIN FELL (277% OF NORMAL). FOLLOWING IS A DETAILED SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA PRECIPITATION SUMMARY FOR THE WATER YEAR JULY 1997 THROUGH JUNE 1998. THOSE STATIONS FOR WHICH A NEW SEASONAL RECORD WAS ESTABLISHED HAVE BEEN INDICATED WITH AN ASTERISK. RAINFALL INFORMATION FOR ORANGE...RIVERSIDE...AND SAN DIEGO COUNTIES WAS PROVIDED COURTESY OF NWSO SAN DIEGO. CUSTOMERS WISHING TO OBTAIN THIS FILE FOR THEIR RECORDS OR USE CAN COPY THIS DATA SET FROM THE LOS ANGELES/OXNARD NWS HOME PAGE AT HTTP://WWW.NWSLA.NOAA.GOV. 97-98 SEASONAL NORMAL PERCENT RAINFALL RECORD (YEAR) RAINFALL OF NORMAL * = RECORD INCHES INCHES SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY MORRO BAY 34.74 35.02 (82-83) 15.73 221 PASO ROBLES 27.07 31.25 (68-69) 13.95 194 PISMO BEACH 34.80 35.92 (77-78) 16.27 214 SAN LUIS OBISPO 43.98 54.53 (68-69) 23.46 187 SANTA MARGARITA 57.02 63.22 (82-83) 30.62 186 COUNTY AVERAGE 200 SANTA BARBARA COUNTY CUYAMA 21.50* 15.56 (68-69) 8.01 268 GIBRALTAR DAM 68.85* 64.79 (82-83) 25.37 271 LAKE CACHUMA 53.39* 43.90 (82-83) 18.73 285 LOMPOC 37.25* 32.78 (82-83) 13.95 267 SAN MARCOS PASS 73.87 78.48 (82-83) 26.62 277 SANTA BARBARA 46.99* 45.21 (40-41) 16.98 277 SANTA MARIA 32.58* 30.73 (40-41) 12.36 264 COUNTY AVERAGE 273 VENTURA COUNTY FILLMORE 45.49 N/A 18.07 252 OJAI 48.68* 47.32 (77-78) 20.70 235 OXNARD 37.84 38.17 (40-41) 14.38 263 POINT MUGU 31.81 N/A 10.50 303 SANTA PAULA 44.33* 37.46 (77-78) 17.39 255 SIMI VALLEY 40.05* 32.90 (77-78) 14.49 276 THOUSAND OAKS 39.85 N/A 15.38 259 VENTURA 42.70* 36.71 (40-41) 14.32 298 COUNTY AVERAGE 268 LOS ANGELES COUNTY BURBANK 37.09 39.39 (77-78) 15.87 234 CHATSWORTH 44.19* 41.30 (77-78) 16.74 264 CULVER CITY 31.39* 26.03 (68-69) 13.06 240 LONG BEACH 29.68* 29.09 (40-41) 11.80 252 L.A. AIRPORT 31.29* 28.55 (40-41) 12.01 261 L.A. CIVIC CENTER 31.01 38.18 (1883-84) 14.77 210 MONTEBELLO 36.27 N/A N/A N/A MOUNT WILSON 67.11 92.06 (82-83) 37.50 179 NEWHALL 36.66 46.86 (77-78) 17.96 204 NORTHRIDGE 36.10* 34.11 (82-83) 14.81 244 PALMDALE 16.08 18.41 (40-41) 6.92 232 PASADENA 39.17 46.62 (82-83) 19.37 202 SAN GABRIEL 37.81 40.76 (82-83) 17.90 211 SANTA MONICA PIER 30.07 36.21 (77-78) 13.21 228 TORRANCE 31.62 31.78 (77-78) 13.57 233 UCLA 43.55* 40.74 (77-78) 17.03 256 COUNTY AVERAGE 230 ORANGE COUNTY ANAHEIM 31.43 N/A 14.60 215 NEWPORT BEACH 28.04* 25.62 (77-78) 10.85 258 SANTA ANA 30.65 34.34 (40-41) 12.27 250 COUNTY AVERAGE 241 RIVERSIDE COUNTY ALPINE 33.93 37.19 (40-41) 16.62 204 HEMET 25.67* 25.41 (77-78) 11.57 222 IDYLLWILD 45.01 57.14 (82-83) 26.21 172 RIVERSIDE 21.41 22.72 (40-41) 10.00 214 SUN CITY 18.55 24.16 (77-78) N/A N/A COUNTY AVERAGE 203 SAN DIEGO CAMPO 27.54 29.00 (79-80) 14.75 187 CHULA VISTA 19.18 25.57 (40-41) 9.34 205 CUYAMACA 54.44 74.63 (82-83) 34.57 157 ESCONDITO 28.12 31.36 (40-41) N/A N/A OCEANSIDE 20.01 26.13 (77-78) 10.93 183 PALOMAR MOUNTAIN 53.09 64.28 (77-78) 28.08 189 POWAY 28.89 29.62 (77-78) 13.02 222 RAMONA 31.69 36.85 (79-80) N/A N/A SAN DIEGO 17.78 24.74 (40-41) 9.90 180 VISTA 24.02 27.95 (40-41) 13.04 184 COUNTY AVERAGE 188 BRUNO/RYAN/MCCLUNG NNNN