By Josh Bergeron

josh.bergeron@salisburypost.com

Harvey’s record-breaking rainfall totals may be higher than previously thought.

A rain gauge near the Jack Brooks Regional Airport recorded 64.58 inches of rain from Aug. 24 to Sept. 1, according numbers released this week by the National Weather Service. The rain gauge, operated by Drainage District 7, sits just southwest of Nederland.

If confirmed, the number would break the U.S. record for most precipitation by a tropical cyclone, said National Weather Service Meteorologist Roger Erickson. Before Harvey first set a record around 50 inches in the Houston Area, Tropical Storm Amelia set the record in 1978 at 48 inches.

Erickson said the DD7 gauge’s data would be reviewed to ensure the 64.58-inch total is valid. Scientists will ensure the equipment was calibrated correctly and that there weren’t obstructions that affected the total. A rain gauge sitting too close to a house, for example, could be affected by runoff from the building’s roof, he said.

So far, however, rainfall near Nederland stands up to scrutiny.

“From everything we’ve looked at so far, we don’t see any issues,” he said.

Another DD7 rain gauge in Groves recorded a similar rainfall total — 63.14 inches.

Those rainfall amounts are higher than what the Beaumont-Port Arthur area receives in an average year, according to the National Weather Service. Average yearly precipitation at the Jack Brooks Regional Airport is 60.47 inches.

On Friday afternoon, Beaumont-Port Arthur’s rainfall total for 2017 was 89.60 inches, according to the National Weather Service. That also appears to be record. The previous wettest year for Beaumont-Port Arthur was 1946, when 83.82 inches of rain was recorded.

Erickson said numbers released this week may not be finalized for several months because outside meteorologists and scientists may come to review the data. Once people begin to analyze the data more closely, Harvey could set other records for rainfall, he said.