Measured rainfall for 2022 in Yachats is running at 77 percent of normal for the year, according to the latest measurements at the city’s wastewater treatment plant.
But that doesn’t necessarily mean there’s a water shortage because measurements up the Yachats River valley – where the two sources of Yachats’ municipal water are located – are much higher.
The city measured 2.35 inches of rain in October at its wastewater treatment plant – much below the 10-year average of 7.70 inches for the month. The city’s total measurement for the first 10 months of 2022 is 38.82 inches – 77 percent of the 10-year average of 50.33 inches through October.
Eight miles up the Yachats River, Bob Williams measured 3.10 inches of rain in October for a 10-month total of 72.07 inches. Jim Adler, who lives three miles upriver, recorded 3.16 inches in October and has 63.73 inches for the year.
Donald Tucker, who lives two miles north of Yachats measured 2.74 inches of rain in October for a 2022 total of 48.53 inches.
October also saw a record high temperature for the month – 79 degrees on Oct. 1 recorded by Tucker and 84 degrees recorded the same day by Adam Altson, who lives along Ocean View Drive in Yachats.
The high temperature broke previous records of 73 degrees in 2017 and 2018, Tucker said. Total rain for the month was low, but not the lowest for an October – which was 1.87 inches in 2013, Tucker said.
Tucker recorded 19 rain days in October, which nearly tied the record of 18 in 2019. But several days of recording .01 inch were from “extremely heavy dew amounts,” Tucker said, as fog enveloped the coast because of record-warm October temperatures in the Willamette Valley.
