A soggy Basin

The deluge of rain on the Permian Basin has given it a thorough soaking, and more is predicted to come.

The National Weather Service is reporting that rainfall totals are above average. It reported Odessa has received 9.70 inches for the year. Midland is almost as wet. Midland International Airport has received 9.45 inches for the year, 1.86 inches above normal.

Wednesday night and Thursday morning storms brought .78 inches of rain to Schlemeyer Field. Odessa fire department stations reported figures from 0.4 inches at Central Station and Station 2 to 1.2 inches at Station 5. Penwell received .44 inches; Andrews reported .48 inches; and an area extending from northeast Winkler County to Notrees got between 1.5 to 2.5 inches, National Weather Service Weather Technician Susan Griffin said.

All of the rain has had an impact on business-as-usual. City of Odessa Public Information Coordinator Andrea Goodson said water from the collection basin at Freedom Park, next to the YMCA, was pumped out due to flooding. Goodson said workers opened a pump Wednesday evening and water flows with the natural gradient of the ground to and out of a drain on Nabors Lane. From there, Goodson said it flows down the street and into the Monahans Draw.

The United Way Day of Caring that was scheduled Thursday was canceled due to rain.

“It’s not often something in Odessa is canceled due to rain,” United Way Board President Randy Wilson said.

Goodson said there were no reports of high-water rescues due to Thursday’s early morning rainfall.

Power knocked out by Wednesday morning storms has been restored to most Odessa residents. Oncor Area Manager Sue Mercer said only about 30 Ector County customers are without power. Mercer said additional crews were being brought in from the metroplex Thursday to get the remaining problems fixed. There were 162 customers without power in Andrews and 20 in Monahans as of 3:30 p.m. Thursday, Mercer said.

But the excessive rain isn’t necessarily a problem for everyone. Area cotton farmers are loving every drop.

“Right now, this is a good thing for the farmers. They don’t see raindrops, they see money,” Robert Cantu said. Cantu works for the Oasis Gin in Seminole.

Cantu said the rainfall combined with the daytime sunlight produces an ideal situation for growing cotton. At this point in the growing cycle, heavy rain is good for the crops. Cantu said having too much rain doesn’t become a problem until the cotton has bloomed. Cotton is harvested in mid-to-late September. When the cotton bloom gets wet, it gets heavy and can fall off and wet blossoms cannot be harvested, he said.

Thursday morning storm winds weren’t near as strong as Wednesday morning’s storm winds. Griffin said the highest winds reported Thursday morning was 18 miles per hour.

But Mother Nature isn’t done yet. Griffin said there is a 50 percent chance of storms through this morning. Heavy rain, strong winds and hail are all possible with the storm system.

“Because of the saturated ground, rain could cause some flash flooding problems. The heaviest rain will be in localized areas and up to 2 to 3 inches across southeast New Mexico, across the northern Permian Basin and the rolling plains. Anything north of Pecos River could be affected by the rain,” Griffin said. “The storms will have a little more of a strengthening mechanism because of cold front right along with it.”

BY THE NUMBERS

Rain readings at each Odessa Fire Department station

>> Central Station: 0.4 inches.

>> Station Two: 0.4 inches.

>> Station Three 0.55 inches.

>> Station Four: 0.6 inches.

>> Station Five: 1.2 inches.

>> Station Six: 0.5 inches.

>> Station Seven: Rain gauge malfunctioned.

>> Station Eight: 0.5 inches.

Reporting outages

Power outages can be reported to Oncor at www.oncor.com or by calling 1-888-313-4747.