Soggy commute likely as new showers approach Dallas-Fort Worth area

By BILL MILLER

wmiller@star-telegram.com

Wednesday's rain showers had already put a dent in the drought, but there needs to be much more rain to eliminate the total deficit, according to the National Weather Service.

More rain, however, was falling late Wednesday afternoon, setting the stage for a soggy commute home.

Weather service radar at 3 p.m. showed Tarrant County beneath a large band of showers that developed over West Texas and moved east.

Earlier, 2.09 inches of rain fell from showers that arrived in the region just before dawn, said Jesse Moore of the weather service.

"This is a productive rain," Moore said, "and it's putting a nice dent in our rainfall deficit."

By comparison, Moore said, there had only been 1.54 inches recorded since Jan. 1, but the normal rainfall through March 10 is supposed to be 5.27 inches.

The showers are expected to come and go over the next couple of days, the result of chilly air at the surface, delivered overnight by a northern cold front, and warmer air aloft, Moore said.

"But it gets enhanced by upper level disturbances that are helping the air to rise more, which increases showers and thunderstorms," Moore said.

He added that there will be a series of these disturbances over the next few days.

But a lot more rain is needed to eliminate the drought in North Texas, which began a year and a half ago.

He explained that 2008 ended with 27.10 inches -- about 7.63 below normal.

That deficit carried into 2009 which, until today, was already 1.54 below normal, making a total deficit of 9.17 inches.

Moore also noted that not every portion of Tarrant County received 2 inches of rain Wednesday morning. Areas in the far northwest part of the county only got about .45 inches, he said.

But the latest showers expected Wednesday afternoon and evening have the potential of dropping another half inch on the region, Moore said.

Also, another storm system is expected to approach North Texas from the southwest late Wednesday night, Moore said.

Earlier on Wednesday, flashing signals alerted motorists to accumulations of rain at low-water crossings on Dirks Road in far southwest Fort Worth and at Buck Sansom Park on the northwest side, but those areas had drained by early afternoon.

City officials urge people not to drive through low-water crossings while the signals are flashing, said Janice Thompson-Burgess, spokeswoman for the city's street department.

A third location -- 8000 block of Old Granbury Road in south Fort Worth -- also experienced high water Wednesday morning, but it was clear in the afternoon, Thompson-Burgess said.

That area, she explained, frequently has drainage issues, but it doesn't yet have a flashing signal. The city, however, has targeted the area for drainage improvements.

Flooding could have been much worse but the North Texas soil, parched by drought, was rapidly absorbing most of the rainfall, said Joe Harris, also of the weather service.

Also Wednesday, Oncor Electric Delivery began the day with 500 power outages across the Dallas-Fort Worth area, said Catherine Cuellar, company spokeswoman.

That number was whittled down to 300 by 3 p.m., she said.

Numerous traffic accidents were reported during the morning commute, although it was unclear if weather was an exact cause for any of them.

BILL MILLER, 817-390-7684

Looking for comments?