October rainfall drives drought out of Iowa

Severe drought was driven from across Iowa for the first time in over a year. A Successful Farming article says the credit for that goes to widespread rainfall in October that made it one of the wettest on record. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources says roughly five inches of rain fell around the state.

Tim Hall, the DNR’s hydrology resources coordinator, says, “The widespread, above-normal rainfall during October was just what we needed in Iowa. Soaking rainfall ahead of winter’s freeze will set us up for a much better start to next year.”

The U.S. Drought Monitor shows less than half the state is abnormally dry or in moderate drought. That’s a big turnaround from June when over half the state was in either severe or moderate drought. While the dry conditions had farmers concerned, some timely rains salvaged some of the crop yields. It’s the first time since July 2020 that no part of the state suffered from severe drought.

Many areas in Iowa got more than double the normal amounts of rainfall. For example, Estherville picked up just over seven inches during October. The only place in the state with less-than-normal rainfall was the northeast corner.


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