Making A Splash

HARLINGEN - Thursday's rainfall across the Rio Grande Valley slowed motorists on U.S. Expressway 83, broke a  rainfall record for that calendar day in Brownsville and even produced pebble-sized hail in southern Hidalgo County, weather officials said.

City officials in both Harlingen and San Benito said the cities did not encounter flooding. However, drivers in Harlingen skirted minor street flooding on 77 Sunshine Strip.

Harlingen and McAllen received less than an inch of rain, Alfredo Vega, a forecaster for the National Weather Service station in Brownsville, said. But some isolated areas in Hidalgo County may have received close to 3 inches.

The rainfall total in Brownsville was 2.678 inches, Vega said. That broke a decades-old record of 2.60 inches for the day, he added.

Most of the heavy rainfall occurred around Donna and Alamo, Vega said. Pea- to pebble-sized hail was also reported in those cites.

A weak cold front with moisture in the air and an upper level disturbance created the thunderstorms, he said.

Most of the thunderstorm activity had moved east off the coast by late afternoon, Vega said.

Vega said rainfall was not expected throughout the weekend. Today's weather should be "fairly nice" with temperatures at 80 degrees, he said.

A cold front tonight into Saturday morning will leave temperatures at 70 degrees.