April was cool and wet in Nevada

Sandra Chereb

Monday, May 3, 1999 | 2:43 a.m.

RENO - April was cooler than normal and the first month in the ending water year that was wet statewide, state Climatologist John James said Monday.

"Totals for the water year range from 125 percent of normal in the eastern Sierra and northeast Nevada to near normal in the east and central areas of the state and 60-80 percent in the extreme south," James said.

Water years are based on the amount of moisture received from Oct. 1 through April 30, generally the wettest period in Nevada.

Las Vegas received 0.73 inches of precipitation in April, making it the fifth wettest April recorded since record keeping began in 1937, James said. It was also the first wet month for the region in the water year that just ended.

Reno picked up 0.55 inches in April, more than a tenth of an inch above the norm, according to the National Weather Service. But Reno's overall precipitation was only 71 percent for the water year, James said.

About 50 miles to the east, 1.52 inches was recorded at Lahontan Reservoir last month, James said. That's about as much as it received in the previous six months combined, bringing the water year total to a near-normal 3.10 inches.

Elko picked up 1.75 inches for the month, about twice its normal amount, while Ely received 0.8 inches, two-tenths of an inch below normal.

Precipitation in Winnemucca was normal at 0.84 inches for the month.

Temperatures statewide generally were 2-5 degrees below normal for the month, though extremes ranged from near zero in the northeast to near 100 in the south, James said.