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Rain that stained is easy to explain
Web Posted: 03/19/2008 12:55 AM CDT
Vincent T. Davis
Express-News
Late rush-hour showers Tuesday brought welcome rain and something else that had residents scratching their heads — a dousing of dirty rain.
Drops of rust-colored rain splattered the city, leaving a grimy stain on clothes and cars that had people wondering, what the heck was going on?
Greg Newman encountered the dirty rainfall after dinner at a restaurant in La Vernia.
He said he thought it was something simple but wasn't certain that his clothes wouldn't be damaged or if the drops on his skin were unhealthy. And while driving on U.S. 87, he looked out through a red-splotched windshield and saw a bronze-streaked sky that had some residents joking about the end of the world.
"I wondered if it was coming up from Mexico or acid rain," said Newman, 54. "It was halfway intimidating; it was on my hands and all over."
According to the National Weather Service, the dirty raindrops weren't mud, but ash. The source was a large fire in central Mexico, near Mexico City, said weather forecaster Joe Baskin.
There could be dust from storms out of Monterrey in the rain, but the significant part comes from the smoke, Baskin said.
"It's kind of unusual to have ash mixed in with rain," Baskin said. "It doesn't happen often. This stuff will push on through."
And the smoky rain staining cars? Baskin said it would wash right off, adding the dirty drops don't pose an immediate health concern.
A front that swept storms through the area will move south of San Antonio by today, Baskin said.
A total of 0.17 inch of rain was measured at San Antonio International Airport.
Today's forecast calls for sunny skies and temperatures in the mid-70s.
A series of storms packing strong winds and heavy rains hit North Texas on Tuesday, grounding hundreds of flights, forcing an airport control tower to evacuate briefly and sending floodwaters spilling into Dallas-area streets.
Winds of more than 100 mph briefly were reported at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, where lightning struck a ramp earlier in the day.
The conditions led American Airlines to cancel flights scheduled from 11 a.m. through the remainder of Tuesday at D-FW — affecting some 700 departures and arrivals. More than 100 of the carrier's flights headed to D-FW were diverted, spokesman Tim Wagner said.
Eight American Airlines flights en route to D-FW were diverted to San Antonio International Airport, city aviation spokesman David Hebert said.
Also, flights between San Antonio and Dallas were canceled, Hebert said, though he didn't know how many. But the effect was likely significant.
"Dallas is by far the most active destination when it comes to San Antonio flights," he said.
Southwest Airlines canceled at least 80 flights in and out of Dallas' Love Field on Tuesday, but a spokeswoman didn't know how many were scheduled to come from or go to San Antonio.
More than half of the 950 flights for all airlines scheduled to depart D-FW on Tuesday were canceled, airport officials said.
"This is one of the most vicious thunderstorms D-FW has seen in quite some time, especially its ongoing intensity," said airport spokesman Ken Capps. It's unclear how many travelers were affected by the cancellations, but airport officials estimate that about 160,000 passengers pass through D-FW each day.
By Tuesday afternoon, the Federal Aviation Administration began allowing about 30 aircraft an hour to depart. But continuing lightning and strong winds may have grounded more flights Tuesday evening, airport officials said.
FAA officials evacuated D-FW's west tower for about 15 minutes after seeing a funnel cloud over a highway. A funnel cloud was also spotted over Lake Lewisville, just north of the airport.
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Staff Writer Patrick Driscoll and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Online at: http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/metro/stories/MYSA031908.01B.RainStory.37a06e3.html
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Dirty rain blurred the view through windshields, but the National Weather service said it wasn't a health hazard.
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The conditions led American Airlines to cancel flights.
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