A much needed dry day in the forecast for your Tuesday which is exactly what we need after yesterdays downpours that left several fields filled with water and even caused quite a bit of flash flooding in area towns. Very heavy amounts of rainfall on the order of 2-3 inches feel in a short period of time that cause several issues for many folks with tons of pictures circulating of flooded streets and fields.
Radar estimated rain totals beginning at 8am Monday show quite a heavy swath of rain fell just to the immediate south of Sterling, with rain totals nearing or surpassing 3 inches as estimated by radar. This heavy swath continues up through Rochelle and points eastward. Most other locations picked up 2 inches or more.
This plot courtesy of the Iowa Environmental Mesonet shows the official rainfall report from the NWS observation station located at the Whiteside County Airport. Notice the quick spike in the monthly rainfall total after yesterday’s rain, as we have pretty much reached our average June precipitation total that we typically see, and we are only halfway through the month! Impressive!
The stalled out frontal system that was responsible for the recent period of active weather has pushed far enough to the south of the area today that we’ll remain rain free and see some sunshine. Highs today are expected to be right around 80 with a light easterly breeze.
The dry conditions will be retreating as we head through the overnight hours as the front begins to move back north in response to a return to southwesterly flow aloft. We could see a few scattered showers and storms in the area by Wednesday morning, but more widespread activity is expected during the afternoon hours. Highs will remain warm in the lower 80s, with increasing levels of humidity as the day progresses. The rain chances will hang around through the upcoming weekend, though Friday as of right now is looking dry and perhaps the first part of Saturday.
Tropical Storm Bill will bring heavy rains just to the south of the area along the stationary front. At this time most of the models keep the heaviest precipitation to the south of the area, something we’ll continue to monitor as any further heavy rainfall will only complicate matters.
