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North Texas Has Gone 30 Days With No Rain

Andy Dean Photography
/
Shutterstock.com

Five stories that have North Texas talking: it’s hot and dry out there; Tax-Free Weekend is here; Dallas is a dangerous red-light runner city; and more.

North Texas has gone 30 days in a row without rain, the National Weather Service says. We’re not close to breaking a record – the record for most consecutive days without precipitation was back in 2000 when we didn’t get rain for 55 days (July 30 to Sept. 22). Waco has gone 38 days without any measurable rain, the National Weather Service says.

The latest drought report shows the drought hasn’t returned to North Texas, but it has returned to some parts of East Texas. The U.S. Drought Monitor shows nearly 5 percent of the state is considered to be in a moderate drought. And a small chunk – less than 1 percent – is classified as being in a severe drought. But about 28 percent of the state is now considered to be abnormally dry – and that includes parts of North Texas, including Dallas, Tarrant and Rockwall counties.

Just a few weeks ago, the state was drought free.

The forecast doesn’t call for rain this weekend. There is a chance of rain Tuesday. Temperatures should climb above 100 degrees for the next several days. A heat advisory is in effect until 7 p.m. Monday as temperatures could reach 107 degrees in some parts.

Credit U.S. Drought Monitor
A look at drought conditions in Texas this week.

  • Tax-Free Weekend is here. The state’s annual sales tax holiday is Friday through Sunday. The law drops sales taxes on most clothing, school supplies, shoes and backpacks – as long as they’re under $100. The Dallas Morning News has more details. Check out the state comptroller’s website for more details.

  • Dallas is the seventh most dangerous city in the U.S. for red-light running. That’s according to the National Coalition for Safer Roads, which looked at fatalities in cities from 2004-2013. Houston is the country’s worst city. Phoenix was No. 2 and Los Angeles was No. 3. This week is National Stop on Red Week. More than 7,000 people have been killed between 2004-2013 due to red-light running. The national coalition says more than 3.7 million drivers in the U.S. ran a red light in 2014 – and a large percentage of the violations happened during the summer.

  • Watch the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders re-create Dez Bryant’s infamous “no-catch.” TheFumble.com reports: “While distraught Cowboys fans spent weeks agonizing and arguing over Bryant's overturned touchdown catch at a crucial moment in the team's divisional round loss to the Green Bay Packers in the playoffs [last January], it's good to know that their cheerleaders have a sense of humor about the historic incompletion.” Here’s the video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4niph4M9M3A

[h/t KERA's Stephen Becker]

Photo:Andy Dean Photography/Facebook

Eric Aasen is KERA’s managing editor. He helps lead the station's news department, including radio and digital reporters, producers and newscasters. He also oversees keranews.org, the station’s news website, and manages the station's digital news projects. He reports and writes stories for the website and contributes pieces to KERA radio. He's discussed breaking news live on various public radio programs, including The Takeaway, Here & Now and Texas Standard, as well as radio and TV programs in New Zealand and the United Kingdom.