Saturday, January 30, 1999
Year's worth of weather
Hot? Cold? January had it
BY KEVIN ALDRIDGE
The Cincinnati Enquirer
January acted more like a thrill ride at Paramount's Kings Island than the first month of 1999.
A month that started with heavy ice and snow ended with thunderstorms, lightning and rain. And the temperature was equally sporadic, plummeting to a frigid minus-8 degrees Jan. 5 before climbing to a springlike 68 degrees on Jan. 17.
During that 76-degree swing, salt and shovels gave way to slickers and sunscreen.
While the wild Jekyll-and-Hyde temperatures were playing havoc with Tristate thermometers, experts say that's not out of the ordinary. January is known for producing a mix of precipitation and unpredictable weather conditions.
One possible factor for this month's run of extreme weather, experts say, is La Nina. That is an abnormally cold pool of water stretching across the equatorial Pacific that causes far-flung changes in the atmosphere's behavior.
La Nina may not be as familiar as its opposite number, El Nino, which warms the Pacific instead of cooling it.
La Nina does not appear as often, and its impact is somewhat less predictable. But this winter, government scientists say, its interaction with routine climate behavior has produced an unusual run of weather in North America.
Meteorologists predict February will be a bit more manageable. The temperature should be slightly above normal with little chance for heavy snow or rain.
But to be safe, don't stash the snow shovel yet.
“The possibility of more winter weather can't really be ruled out until sometime in April,” said Brian Coniglio, meteorologist with the National Weather Service.
At Squirt the Dirt Car Wash, 991 Reading Road in Mason, owner Tim Reigert is enjoying the respite from the snow and ice — and from a business slump.
“Winter is always like a roller coaster for those of us in this business. For two or three days out of the week, your lot is completely empty, then suddenly the next day you've got 20 or 30 cars out there.”
Cincinnati.com Weather Page
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TRISTATE DIGEST
