Portales dry spell broken

Scott Parker says if a few days of sun follow Monday evening's thunderstorm, his lawn and shrubs may have a chance.

"There's nothing like a good rain," said Parker, Portales High School's girls assistant soccer and softball coach, about the 0.56 inches of precipitation that drenched Portales.

Parker said his smoke bushes were completely bloomed before the overnight freezes last week wiped them out. He hopes Monday night was the start of good weather for the area.

"Usually by now everything is green and budded," Parker said. "Now if we have a few days of warm, it would help."

Meanwhile in Clovis, a quick rain never reached that amount.

According to National Weather Service Meteorologist Shawn Bennett, Clovis only received 0.04 inches of rain earlier Monday and received traces when the thunderstorm hit Portales.

Bennett attributes the missed opportunity to the right-moving thunderstorm, which means it turned and went to Texas.

"If you're really thunderstorm savvy, a right-mover starts moving out and curves to the right," Bennett said. "It's common with severe thunderstorms."

Bennett said Portales also received quarter-sized hail that covered two inches of the ground and the area experienced winds as high as 60 mph. He says no major damage or injuries were reported as of Monday night.

"This is the first severe weather we've reported this year in New Mexico," Bennett said. "It was special to get that much rain."

Monday's rain broke the area's dry spell, which had reached one rainless month for Portales and nearly two for Clovis.

But even though Monday's rain provided hope for many, National Weather Service Meteorologist Kerry Jones said to not expect much for the rest of May or June.

"Precipitation is expected to be near to below normal and temperatures above normal," Jones said.

According to Jones, the average high temperatures for may are in the upper 70s and will increase to the mid 80s by the end of the month.

"An average May precipitation total for May is 2.03 inches and we're well behind that," Jones said. "For June, it's 2.56 (inches). The odds are tilted toward dryer than average. There are just fewer opportunities (for rain) in the springtime."

Jones said there is a chance it will rain in Clovis and Portales Thursday night into Friday morning, when the temperatures will come down to the mid 70's.

As far as the recent shifting weather, Jones predicts there should be no more freezes or below-average cold temperatures.

"We definitely don't see those wild fluctuations of temperatures, certainly not this week," Jones said. "We're getting to that time of the year where it's getting much less common. The extreme cold is pretty much done for."

Portales florist Aileen McAlister said it has been an unusual year for weather, but she's just happy she's waited until now to plant.

"I got three-10ths of an inch of rain (Monday) so I'm very pleased," McAlister said. "Hopefully, this is just the start of much better weather for us."

She's excited to see her flowers bloom, especially the larkspur flower in all its pinks, purples and whites as long as the cold weather is done with.

"(Monday's rain) has given hope but it sure doesn't end the drought," McAlister said. "Hopefully it's just the start of better things to come."