Several winter storms have barreled through the Midwest since the start of the year, bringing deep snow and bitter cold. In Iowa, where treacherous roads caused hundreds of accidents, snowpack grew up to 20 inches in some places — marking a winter with 180% more precipitation than normal, so far.
Last week’s storm reached all the way down to Memphis, where the mayor declared a state of emergency after six inches of snow snarled traffic and freezing temperatures caused at least two deaths. Meantime, schools and offices were closed in New Orleans and Baton Rouge last week due to several days of sub-zero weather in the south.
Drought conditions don’t typically improve in the winter, as frozen soils can’t soak up precipitation. The warmer-than-normal December allowed rainfall to infiltrate soils across the western Corn Belt. Parts of Iowa received more than double the month’s average rainfall. Drought conditions have improved in western Minnesota, Kansas and Missouri.
“That was really beneficial because soils were not frozen yet,” said Dennis Todey, director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Midwest Climate Hub. “A lot of that was able to soak into the soil.”
The winter storms that passed through the Midwest even tossed some rain to some parts of the basin, particularly in southern Illinois and Missouri, before the ground froze.
Winter weather advisories are in effect throughout the upper Mississippi River basin, and freeze warnings and watches span the lower basin. Much of the ground is frozen in the Midwest, so soils can’t absorb expected snowmelt. The water can help in another way: It can feed into parched waterways across the basin.
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Categories: Iowa, Weather