Thursday, February 10, 2011
Oklahoma beats Spokane
Truly amazing. Northern Okla, my old stomping ground, has set some low temps that beat Spokane's all-time records. The Spokane record low is -25, with several years hitting -22 or -23. Negative temps aren't rare here; every winter bumps zero for at least a week, and about half of all winters dip a little below.
Last night in Okla, both Enid and Ponca hit -23, Newkirk and Medford hit -27, Nowata hit -31.
Those values are much farther from the norm in Okla, where +15 is the bottom in most years. Their household plumbing and heating systems, and their city water systems, weren't designed with subzero cold in mind. Their roofs are not designed for two feet of snow followed by extreme cold. An occasional inch or two, melting the next day, is the typical winter pattern.
Gonna be lots of ice dams, lots of collapsed roofs, lots of ruined ceilings and walls.
This winter is truly strange. Began in La Niña form, early and heavy in November, 30 inches of Global Warming here. Felt like it was going to break all records. Then after early December it suddenly flipped over to El Niño form, slamming California and the Midwest hard. Since that switchover the Northwest has received pretty much average temps and precip.
Maybe this winter is a tranny. Call it Miss Niño Fabuloso.
¶ 12:18 PM
Last night in Okla, both Enid and Ponca hit -23, Newkirk and Medford hit -27, Nowata hit -31.
Those values are much farther from the norm in Okla, where +15 is the bottom in most years. Their household plumbing and heating systems, and their city water systems, weren't designed with subzero cold in mind. Their roofs are not designed for two feet of snow followed by extreme cold. An occasional inch or two, melting the next day, is the typical winter pattern.
Gonna be lots of ice dams, lots of collapsed roofs, lots of ruined ceilings and walls.
This winter is truly strange. Began in La Niña form, early and heavy in November, 30 inches of Global Warming here. Felt like it was going to break all records. Then after early December it suddenly flipped over to El Niño form, slamming California and the Midwest hard. Since that switchover the Northwest has received pretty much average temps and precip.
Maybe this winter is a tranny. Call it Miss Niño Fabuloso.
¶ 12:18 PM
