Rain, rain and more rain…when will it end?

We have certainly had no shortage of rain across southeastern Minnesota and northern Iowa over the last few days/weeks/months. Compared to this time last year, we couldn’t be more opposite in fact! While it has been great to see more rain, it has gotten quite excessive for many, leading to frequent flooding concerns.

As of today, Rochester is running 1.83″ above average for the month of July, 6.34″ above average for the summer so far, and 6.04″ above average for the year.

Mason City is running 1.68″ above average this month, 1.93″ above average for the summer, and 4.09″ above average for the year.

In just the last 24 hours or so, locations such as Owatonna, Chatfield, and Mason City have seen over 1″ of rain, with other locations seeing their fair share as well.

This active weather has been largely due to a unsettled upper atmospheric jet stream. The jet stream has been very wavy since earlier this summer, and this pattern is expected to continue through the first half of the upcoming week. As a result, there will be multiple shower and t-storm chances Saturday night through Wednesday.

The good thing with these storm chances, especially for Monday through Wednesday, is that any storms that do develop will be more scattered and not everyone will receive rain. By the end of next week things look to finally quiet down as high pressure builds in, and perhaps we can finally get a break from the seemingly non-stop rain.