Happy Summer! ... and why so much rain???

Summer has officially arrived to the northern hemisphere!  Summer officially arrive at 12:16 p.m today - while you were probably enjoying a good lunch.  This also means that today is the longest day of the year.

However, it sure didn't feel like summer around the Upper Midwest today.  A strong low pressure system has been influencing the region since Monday evening and will continue to linger through the day on Thursday before finally moving out on Thursday night.  Some of these storms have had heavy rain with them as well.  There is so much moisture available for this storm system that's it's not funny!    Luckily, warmer and drier conditions will return by the weekend.  By why is this storm so powerful?

It actually because of the monsoon that has been going on over southeast Asia and the Philippines.  Energy from the monsoon has managed to follow the jet stream across the Pacific and reform into storms just off the west coast.  As the new storm then moves across the Rocky Mountains, it meets a lot of available moisture in the Mississippi River Valley.  This is due to the flow around an upper level ridge of high pressure over the Southeast U.S. pumping the moisture in from the Gulf of Mexico.  Add to it a slowly moving weather pattern and you get a good soaker.

Many areas in the Upper Midwest are currently seeing floods (along the Missouri River - record flooding... yikes!) while other areas are under flash flood watches.  I got to experience a flash flood indirectly on Sunday morning as over 5 inches of rain in under 3 hours created a flash flood in the valleys around SW Vernon/NW Crawford County.  The resulting flash flood wiped out my Internet and phone connection making it impossible for me to forecast weather.  It also wreaked havoc on the rural road infrastructure in the region.  Not good.

Anyways, let's hope we don't get any more rain for a while.  We've had enough.  There are other areas of the country that need it worse - like Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, and the other drought stricken areas of the Southern U.S.

Until next time, stay dry - and Happy Summer!

Water, Water Everywhere!

Another element that can arise from severe thunderstorms is the threat of flash flooding.  Flash flooding typically occurs when an area that has extremely saturated soil receives heavy rains (or even light to moderate rain over a long period of time).  Flash flooding becomes even more dangerous in areas where topography can lead to water moving extremely fast down hill, such as mountain ranges... or the bluffs, ridges, and valleys of our very own Coulee Region.
Flash floods are the number one weather-related killer in the United States.  Flash floods are capable of moving boulders, removing trees, damaging buildings and bridges, and can even change the course of rivers and streams!  One such event happened in August of 2007 here in the Coulee Region.  Parts of La Crosse and Vernon County received between 11 and 15" of rain in about 36 hours.  The result was mudslides, rock slides, rapid rises in creeks and streams, road damage, bridges were wiped out and destroyed, and some creeks even changed course.  While this was considered a 1000 year event, it can happen anywhere and at anytime.

The best advice is that when a flash flood warning is issued for your area, head for higher ground!  Especially if you live along a creek or stream or reside in a valley.  And DO NOT DRIVE THROUGH FLOODED ROADS!  Turn around, don't drown!  The water in a flash flood is moving incredibly fast and you will be swept away before you know it.