Summer's end reflects season's severity

AUSTIN (KXAN) - Just one day shy of the record, it was still an extremely hot summer across central Texas, and now it's over after 68 days of triple digit days.

As the drought sucked the life from thousands of trees across central Texas, some of the oldest and most beloved in Austin were at risk of removal because of safety concerns.

Last summer, a branch fell and crushed a man in Zilker Park. This summer, three were slated for removal, and several others are still under scrutiny all because of the lack of water's crumbling effect.

“That’s one of the reasons why we moved to Austin was all the greenery,” Anita Ahiadormey said admiring the towering trees. “We moved from New York City to get away from all the grey. Now we’ve got the beauty, and now you’re going to cut it down?”

One day shy of the most summer days 100 degrees or above, this was still the hottest average on record in Austin and the nearby area. The evaporating effects and the need to use more water caused waterways like Lake Travis to drop to near historic lows. Islands popped up from shore-to-shore, and boaters were reduced to just one limited boat ramp. The heat killed recreation, while the drought deadened most everything in sight.

“From a vegetative standpoint,” said LCRA meteorologist Bob Rose. “I think we’re going to be seeing the impacts of this drought for many years to come, many of our old native trees around this area are severely stressed during this drought.”

From nature to your own home, the heat hurt residents throughout central Texas. Austin Energy said the average summer energy usage jumped 227 kilowatts per hour, most likely because of cooling concerns. Many residents also faced massive water restrictions, as those levels dropped too low to sustain any sense of normalcy

“We don’t really have much of a lawn,” said Austin resident Josh Johnson. “There’s a lot of shamrocks, but I don’t see a lot of grass."

As summer comes to an end, we come back to the trees for guidance, which have withstood the weather for years.

Obviously, it’s going to keep happening,” said Ahiadormey. “We’ve got El Nino coming, but that doesn’t mean its going to solve all our problems.”

In the comment box below, please tell us about your unique summer challenges and the creative ways you worked to overcome them.