Relief from rain, heat and humidity today
Much more comfortable weather is on its way today, but areas of flooding will continue.
Weekend rainfalls of 4 to 8 inches and some reports to around 11 inches in northeastern Minnesota and portions of Wisconsin have caused serious flooding.
Highway 23, the two-laner that many of us drive between Banning and Jay Cooke State Parks south of Duluth, was washed out when the Nemadji River raged out of its banks on Sunday.
Farther north, Airport Road in Two Harbors was washed out.
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Heavy rains continue this morning across northern Wisconsin all the way to Green Bay and Door County. A flash flood warning for rapidly rising water has been in effect early today for northern Buffalo and northern Trempealeau counties in west central Wisconsin where roads are flooded and mudslides have been occurring.
Flood warnings will continue in parts of northeastern Minnesota and northwestern Wisconsin until the floodwaters recede.
Tapering rainfall
Rainfall has been tracking east and sagging southward early this Monday morning.
Comfortable summer returns
High temperatures this afternoon will be mainly in the 70s, well below the 90s that many of us experienced over the weekend. The Twin Cities' average high for today would be 80.
Also, expect dew points to drop quite a bit from north to south today as drier air from Canada filters southward. Dew points in the northwestern corner of Minnesota are in the comfortable 50s this morning.
For those like me who keep track of these things, the Twin Cities' dew point rose to a tropical 78 degrees at 6 p.m. and 7 p.m. Saturday evening. The Twin Cities' record dew point is 82.
More storms?
The upcoming week should be meteorologically unimpressive.
Scattered showers and isolated thunderstorms might pop up later today, Monday night and Tuesday across about the southern third of the state, but strong storms are unlikely. The risk of problematic rainfall will continue to shift southward into Iowa and southern Wisconsin.
More heat and humidity?
No heat waves or excessive moisture outbreaks are likely this week. You may join me in cheering.
Thunderstorms are possible about Friday and maybe into the weekend, but probabilities of rain in any particular area are quite uncertain.