Unfortunately, we missed out on what seemed like a decent chance of rain in the early morning hours. We did receive a brief shower, but it wasn't a measurable amount and it didn't wet the ground below tree canopies. Today, wind gusts up to 50 mph are predicted. The good news is, there is rain predicted for next Saturday at this point. While we are hanging in there just fine on the golf course, despite the fact that hand watering pulls valuable labor away from other jobs that we're trying to get finished. However, as a community, this is very concerning. That has already been about 3 or 4 brush fires that were fortunately handled swiftly by the local fire department and the US Forest Service. Not only is it very dry, but the humidity is extremely low and most days there is a nice breeze. This makes for a situation that can get out of hand pretty quickly.
If you wonder how far behind we are on rainfall, here are my stats:
Year to Date, we are 18.55" below normal.
Combine 2025 to this year, and we are 35.55" below normal.
The total for the last 5 years is 42.55" below normal.
*These deficit totals are based on my personal Highlands CC rainfall measurements and I chose 90" of rain as the annual average to compare against. Depending on the source, I've seen anywhere from 86" to 96" listed as the area's annual average rainfall total.