Drought — Southern Hidalgo County, Texas

2023-09-05 to 2023-09-30 · Southern Hidalgo County, Texas

Event narrative

Extreme (D3) Drought developed in southwest portions of Hidalgo County, from the McAllen metro area west through the county line (Sullivan City) to about 10-12 miles north along the Starr County line. Severe (D2) Drought continued elsewhere in southern Hidalgo County through the 19th. Lack of seasonal rainfall combined with record, searing heat, allowed Extreme conditions to expand eastward along and south of Interstate Highway 2 from McAllen to Mercedes on the 19th; the Extreme Drought area would creep northward on the 26th to include the Edinburg/Elsa/Edcouch area.

The lack of necessary rainfall and record heat heavily impacted dryland crops and livestock across southern Hidalgo County. Specific dollar damages/losses were not known as of this writing (late November).

Wider weather episode

A record hot astronomical summer (June 21 through September 23) combined with a record hot September, combined with below average rainfall during the wettest month of the calendar year, allowed Severe (D2) Drought to worsen to Extreme (D3) Drought across the mid/upper Rio Grande Valley in early September. Lack of sufficient rainfall for the remainder of the month allowed these conditions to remain into October.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1142785. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.