SYLACAUGA, Ala. – The holiday season was not your normal holiday season. It was more characterized by the mildly-warm, wet conditions more than it was Christmas trees and gifts.
The last few weeks of December saw fewer days of sunshine and more days of unusually heavy rainfall. Overall it rained at least a tenth of an inch in 16 of the final 31 days of 2018.
According to the National Weather Service this pattern is abnormal. NWS records show December 2018’s rainfall in south Talladega Co. saw between 8-10 inches in most areas. The northwest corner of Talladega Co. and some parts of Jefferson Co. and Shelby Co. saw over 10 inches of rain in December.
For south Talladega Co., December rainfall reached 150-200 percent of its normal precipitation. An average December normally records between 3-4 inches. North Talladega Co. along with parts of Jefferson Co. and Shelby Co. saw, in some cases, 6-7 inches of rain over their averages.
The average in Sylacauga for the month of January is right around 5 inches. A fifth of that total has already been accounted for in 2019 with more rain on the way. Thursday and Friday have a 99 and 98 percent chance of rain.
