September Recap: Unseasonably Warm and with Lack of Rain

LAWTON, Okla. (KSWO) -

Above average temperatures and below average precipitation dominated the majority of September for Lawton and Texoma.

September 1st’s average is 91 degrees and started with 20 straight days above average, with a couple days in the triple digits. Change came the last day of Summer and first day of fall, when temperatures only hit 83 and were the only days below average. This ended 33 consecutive days above 90 degrees dating back to August 19. We remained in the running for top 10 warmest months of September until the 25th when our monthly average dipped below 93.4 degrees. Lawton rebounded to the lower 90s again for the last weekend before a cold front with rain ended are temperatures still warmer than normal in the mid 80s. Our average temperature for September 30th is 81 degrees, and won’t see an average above that until May 15, 2022.

Lawton Observed High Temperatures for September(KSWO)

Temperatures stayed so warm due to lots of sunshine. cooling off in the second half of the month were influenced by the increased cloud cover and precipitation for Texoma the last week of September. The monthly average rain total is just over three inches, so about 0.11″ per day. 0.12″ was recorded in Lawton on the 4th, but proceeded to have 23 straight days without measurable rainfall. With that, the drought conditions got aggressively worse through the middle of September through the latest drought monitor release.

Drought Monitor- September 30th Update(KSWO)

It’s important to note this shows drought data up until early Tuesday, September 28th, just before we began to see rainfall in Southwest Oklahoma and Northern Central Texas. All areas showed some signs of being abnormally dry except for Jack county. Moderate drought conditions spread to thew majority of the counties in Texoma, with severe drought in Harmon, Greer, Kiowa, Washita, and Stephens counties. Even some extreme drought in spots of Central and Eastern Oklahoma.

Lawton was on pace to be the 6th driest September on record until the 28th. The 23 day streak of no measurable rain in Lawton snapped in a big way, with over 1.50″ of rainfall recorded on the 28th. The last 2 day of September also brought minor accumulations, bringing the total for the month to just under one and three quarter inches.

Rainy Days Few and Far Between for September 2021(KSWO)

What does this mean for Texoma in October? Early outlooks already show more of the same. The forecasts have no precipitation through at least mid October, with the whole region expected below average precipitation accumulations through the end of Autumn. Temperatures in Texoma look to remain mostly above average through October and Fall.

The 6-10 day outlook shows high probability to be above normal through at least October 12th. The outlook also says its likely Texoma will remain drier than normal in the next week and a half. The average temperature in Lawton on October 1st is 81 degrees, and down to 70 by Halloween. Normal precipitation for the month is 2.93″, or about .09″ per day.