Heavy Rain Causes Flooding Late Wednesday/Wednesday Night
Image above: A tree limb and standing water in a lot along 1st Ave. E. is visible after Wednesday's flash flood can be seen Thursday, Aug. 18, 2022, in Cambridge, Minn. - Credit: David Joles, Star Tribune - Article
Isolated areas of heavy rain across portions of northern and eastern Minnesota Wednesday evening caused some flash flooding in spots. This included the Cambridge area, which had a report of 5" in downtown at 8:14 PM Wednesday.
You can see the pockets of heavy rain across northern/eastern Minnesota from Wednesday into Wednesday Night, with more heavy rain across parts of central Minnesota through early Thursday morning. Below is a listing of the top rainfall totals in the NWS Twin Cities forecast area as of 10:34 AM Thursday:
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More Rain On Friday
We continue to watch a meandering area of low-pressure across the upper Midwest heading into the last day of the work week, leading to the potential of showers and storms across the region. The best chance earlier in the day will be to the north and west of the metro, with storm chances increasing into the afternoon and evening hours. Storms could be slow-moving once again, leading to higher rainfall amounts and the potential of more isolated flash flooding.
Potential rainfall amounts through 7 AM Saturday.
Rainfall amounts from Thursday through Friday could easily top half an inch to an inch across a good portion of the state. Again, with the slow-moving nature of some of these storms, localized rainfall tallies could be higher.
So we will watch showers and storms across the state on Friday, with highs in the 70s - up to ten degrees below average in spots.
As shown above, the better chance of storm activity in the metro will be as we head toward the afternoon and evening hours - so if you're heading out to the Twins game you might want to keep an eye on the weather. Temperatures slowly climb from the mid-60s in the morning to the mid-70s in the afternoon.
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Rain Chances Continue Saturday - Dry Sunday
As we look toward the weekend, we will start to see shower and storm chances fade away as the pesky area of low pressure moves away from us. We'll still be under the influence of it Saturday with more clouds than sun. While we will continue to see a few showers and storms around to begin the weekend, the storm coverage will be greatly reduced vs. what we are seeing for the end of the work week. We get out of the influence of that low by Sunday, leading to sunnier skies to end the weekend and begin next week. Temperatures this weekend will be in the mid-70s for highs, starting to rebound to around 80F on Monday.
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Drought Update
Despite last Friday's helpful rain across the region, there wasn't much change in the Drought Monitor released on Thursday with 12.5% of Minnesota under at least moderate drought and 2.3% under severe drought. Most of that severe drought continues to be across the central and southern metro.
You can see in the week-to-week change map that a few areas of central and northern Minnesota saw some slight improvement, while others saw degradation. This adds up to not a whole lot of change in the numbers.
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15 Years Since The Greatest 24-Hour Rain Total In Minnesota History
Meanwhile, 15 years ago back on August 18-20, 2007, very heavy rain fell across portions of southeastern Minnesota. This event set the all-time greatest 24-hour rainfall record for the state: 15.10" ending 8 AM August 19 in Hokah down in Houston County. You can read more on the event from the Minnesota DNR/State Climatology Office. This event also greatly impacted Whitewater State Park - you can watch a video from the Minnesota DNR on that by clicking here.
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Areas Of Heavier Rain Today
By D.J. Kayser, filling in for Paul Douglas
Despite last Friday's helpful rain across the region, there wasn't much change in the Drought Monitor released on Thursday with 12.5% of Minnesota under at least moderate drought and 2.3% under severe drought. Most of that severe drought continues to be across the central and southern metro.
More rain is on the way as we head through today and Saturday as an area of low-pressure meanders across the upper Midwest. At least a widespread 0.5"-1" is expected, and heavier totals are expected in spots due to clusters of storms. Due to this, we may have to watch the potential for isolated flash flooding similar to what occurred in the Cambridge area Wednesday evening.
Meanwhile, 15 years ago in 2007, a storm between August 18-20 brought significant rainfall across southern Minnesota. This storm produced the state's 24-hour rainfall record of 15.10" ending 8 AM August 19 in Hokah down in Houston County. Areas of twenty-eight counties received at least 4" of rain over the entire event.
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D.J.'s Extended Twin Cities Forecast
FRIDAY: Storms with heavy rain. Wake up 65. High 76. Chance of precipitation 90%. Wind S 3-8 mph.
SATURDAY: Widely scattered storms. Wake up 62. High 77. Chance of precipitation 50%. Wind NE 5-10 mph.
SUNDAY: Morning fog. More sun than clouds. Wake up 62. High 80. Chance of precipitation 0%. Wind NE 5-10 mph.
MONDAY: A few clouds. Iso. PM shower north? Wake up 62. High 81. Chance of precipitation 10%. Wind N 5-10 mph.
TUESDAY: Mostly sunny skies. Wake up 64. High 82. Chance of precipitation 0%. Wind E 5-10 mph.
WEDNESDAY: Increasing clouds. Overnight rain. Wake up 63. High 82. Chance of precipitation 30%. Wind NW 5-10 mph.
THURSDAY: A few showers to begin the State Fair. Wake up 63. High 82. Chance of precipitation 30%. Wind NE 5-10 mph.
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Minneapolis Weather Almanac And Sun Data
August 19th
*Length Of Day: 13 hours, 52 minutes, and 56 seconds
*Daylight LOST Since Yesterday: 2 minutes and 50 seconds
*When Do We Drop Below 13 Hours Of Daylight?: September 6 (12 hours, 59 minutes, 29 seconds)
*When Does The Sun Start Rising At/After 7 AM?: September 22nd (7:00 AM)
*When Does The Sun Start Setting At/Before 8 PM?: August 26th (8:00 PM)
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This Day in Weather History
August 19th
2007: Record 24-hour maximum rainfall of 15.10 inches set in Hokah, MN (Houston county). This 24-hour total contributed to the record monthly maximum rainfall of 23.86 inches that was set in Hokah during August of 2007.
1980: Strong winds at Belle Plaine severely damage five planes.
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National Weather Forecast
The big story on Friday will be heavy monsoonal showers and storms in the Southwest that could lead to flooding. We'll also be watching a stationary front in the Southern Plains/Southeast and a frontal system from the Great Lakes to the Central Plains. Both of those will produce storm activity.
Some of the heaviest rain through the first half of the weekend will be in the Southwest, where heavy monsoonal storms could bring at least 3" of rain to parts of Arizona and New Mexico. Flood Watches are in place across these areas due to the heavy rain and flood threat. Pockets of heavy rain will also be possible across the Deep South and Southeast and the upper Midwest.
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Tundra burns helped make the 2022 Alaska fire season one of the biggest since 1950
More from KTOO: "Alaska is closing out what is likely to be the state's seventh-biggest wildfire season since 1950, wrapping up a summer notable for record-breaking fires in the tundra of the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta in the southwestern part of the state. In all, more than 3 million acres have been burned by wildfires this year, according to the federal-state Alaska Interagency Coordination Center. The 2022 total of 3.08 million acres, as of Friday, is slightly less than Alaska's sixth-biggest season, when 3.189 million acres burned in 1990, according to University of Alaska Fairbanks data."
Factory Shutdowns, Showers for Pigs: China's Heat Wave Strains Economy
More from the New York Times: "Faced with China's most searing heat wave in six decades, factories in the country's southwest are being forced to close. A severe drought has shrunk rivers, disrupting the region's supply of water and hydropower and prompting officials to limit electricity to businesses and homes. In two cities, office buildings were ordered to shut off the air conditioning to spare an overextended electrical grid, while elsewhere in southern China local governments urged residents and businesses to conserve energy. The rolling blackouts and factory shutdowns, which affected Toyota and Foxconn, a supplier for Apple, point to the ways that extreme weather is adding to China's economic woes. The economy has been headed toward its slowest pace of growth in years, dragged down by the country's stringent Covid policy of lockdowns, quarantines and travel restrictions, as consumers tightened spending and factories produced less. Youth unemployment has reached a record high, while trouble in the real estate sector has set off an unusual surge of public discontent."
Deep Concern About Food Security in Eastern Africa
More from NASA's Earth Observatory: "The rains have failed in Eastern Africa for four consecutive seasons. That has not happened in 40 years of satellite records. Scientists and aid agencies are now alerting the world to an unprecedented level of food insecurity in 2022 for Ethiopia, Kenya, and Somalia. With forecasts suggesting the next rainy season will also be inadequate, climate and agriculture experts are advising governments and relief agencies to expect a significant need for food assistance. According to a July 29 report from the international Food Security and Nutrition Working Group, the worst drought in 70 years has left more than 16 million people across the Horn of Africa coping with a shortage of drinking water. Yields of key crops are down for the third year in a row, milk production is in decline, and more than 9 million livestock animals have died or been culled due to a lack of water and suitable forage land."
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Thanks for checking in and have a great day! Don't forget to follow me on Twitter (@dkayserwx) and like me on Facebook (Meteorologist D.J. Kayser).
- D.J. Kayser
