Statewide Iowa — Even with the deluges of rain, hail and thunderstorms that brought severe flash flooding to parts of Iowa, June wrapped up with below-normal rainfall statewide.
State climatologist Justin Glisan says we also experienced some wide temperature swings, finishing the month above-normal.
The second half of June brought storms and plenty of them. Parts of southeastern Iowa had heavy downpours, with some areas recording up to 11 inches of rain in two hours. In spite of that, given the long-running drought, the state overall was still lacking for rainfall.
Forecast models indicate the hot, dry pattern will continue into July.
The latest map released Thursday by the U-S Drought Monitor shows conditions improving slightly, as the percentage of the state NOT in drought grew from roughly seven to 14 counties, all in the southeast, while abnormally dry conditions, moderate and severe drought areas all decreased, though slightly.
