Rainfall fades away but flooding continues

The official rainfall at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport Thursday was 4.13 inches. That was a record calendar day rainfall for the month of June and is in fifth place all-time for any month.

Ranking first is the legendary Super Storm of July 23, 1987, with 9.15 inches. MSP measured a whopping 7.27 inches of rain between last Saturday and Thursday. The total for the  month so far is 10.76 inches, which is closing in on the record for June of 11.67 inches back in 1874.

But nobody lives at the airport, so let's compare rain gauge amounts.

I'll go first. I measured 3.54 inches of rain in my backyard in Minneapolis on Thursday, and exactly 7 inches during the six days Saturday-Thursday.

Flooding continues and will continue, of course. There has been widespread flooding of lakes, streams, rural roads, farm fields, low areas, streets and basements. Golf courses have closed and many other businesses have suffered, as well.

Water will drain gradually off the saturated land. Then many of the smaller creeks will lower as the water flows downstream into larger creeks and rivers.

One notable exception will be Minnehaha Creek which will continue to accept floodwater from record-high Lake Minnetonka.

As the lakes and creeks drain, rivers such as the Mississippi, Minnesota, St. Croix and Crow will continue to rise and will not peak until some time next week, based on current forecasts.  Moderate flooding is likely along the Mississippi in the St. Paul area.  The National Weather Service continues to post flood warnings along many rivers.

Friday evening will be as unsettled period across mainly the northern half of Minnesota until sunset approaches. Scattered thunderstorms are developing and some will be stronger or even severe in Minnesota, particularly between the Brainerd lakes area and Bemidji.

Satellite shows storms forming in the northwestern quarter of Minnesota.

Saturday should be the better day of the weekend for most of us.  Isolated showers or even thunderstorms could pop up with the heating of the day but the risk of anything strong is very small.  By Saturday night, some strong to severe storms could develop over the southwestern corner of Minnesota.

Runners in Grandma's Marathon along the North Shore Saturday morning will experience a bit of a breeze from Lake Superior and temperatures mainly in the low 50s.

Pause for a moment on Saturday to observe the summer solstice which comes at 5:51 a.m. and gives us our longest day of the year.  The sun will not set until 9:03 p.m. in the Twin Cities.

If you need more evening than that, head for Hallock, Minnesota, in the northwest where it will not set until 9:35 p.m.

Sunday is likely to be a day with more thunder. While some strong to possibly severe thunderstorms might develop, widespread severe weather is not likely. And it is too soon to forecast just where these storms will be, but southern and central Minnesota seem to have a better chance of getting stormed on than does the north.

Here is a nice little animation from the NWS about what to look for as a thunderstorm forms, as well as a reminder that all thunderstorms produce lightning which is always to be avoided.