October continues trend of dryer-than-normal months

Cold and dry was the story in October in San Juan County, as the string of dryer-than-normal months begins to grow.

The dry month is similar to 2017, but in marked contrast to one year ago, when area communities received several inches of precipitation to mark the end of a prior drought.

For instance, the average monthly precipitation in Blanding for October is .96 of an inch. This year, Blanding had just .05 inch for the entire month, compared to more than four inches in October last year. In October 2017, Blanding had just a trace of precipitation for the entire month.

Across the board, precipitation fell in just a handful of days in October 2019, with area communities receiving significantly lower than average totals.