Monday January 9, 2023
Redding Record Searchlight —
Something unusual happened in Shasta County over the past nine days.
North State residents have slogged through three years of a drought that has killed crops, emptied lakes and forced severe water cutbacks on residents who just wanted to water their lawns or grow a few tomatoes.
The drought is not over, but the amount of rain that has fallen over the region since Jan. 1 has brought at least one small measurement of good news.
As of Monday morning, 3.72 inches of rain had fallen from Jan. 1 to Jan. 9 at the Redding Regional Airport, more than double the the 1.53 inches that normally falls this time of year, according to the National Weather Service.
The rainfall total from Oct. 1 to Jan. 9 was also above normal, according to the weather service. As of Sunday, Redding was sitting at 14.5 inches since Oct. 1; the normal for that period is 13.29 inches.