After a historically rainy spring, June and July have been quite dry across West Michigan. You probably know this, as your lawn has become increasingly brown and crunchy over the past few weeks! Parts of West Michigan are now considered "Abnormally Dry", the lowest category in the Drought Monitor.
How did this happen? Rain totals were very impressive everywhere in West Michigan during the spring season, with all of the major cities reporting over a foot of rain total!
The heavy lifters in terms of rain were March and April. May was a dry month, with most spots ending the month below average. But because March and April were so incredibly rainy, it didn't matter much, and seasonal rankings were still in the top 10 for most for rainiest springs.
But it wasn't just May that was dryer than average. June and July have been the same way, with a few rain days sprinkled throughout the month but totaling much less rain than average.
July has had only 3 rain days that ended with more than a few hundredths of an inch!
With Monday's 1.07" added to the total, we will still end July with less than half the rain that we should get for the month in Grand Rapids. Average is just shy of 4" for the month.
And it's not just Grand Rapids. All of West Michigan has experienced a dry June and July: all major cities are running 1-2" below average for July rain.
With the last 3 months in a row having below average rain amounts by 1-2" each month, it's no surprise we have been included in the Abormally Dry drought category!
Areas currently considered Abnormally Dry: eastern Newaygo, Kent, Mecosta, Montcalm, and Ionia counties. Here there are impacts to agriculture from the lack of rain in terms of slower growing, depleting pond amounts, and increased fire risk from dry fuels.
The good news is, rain is on the horizon! If we can continue making dents in the deficit with frequent rain, it shouldn't get significantly worse heading toward fall.
Rain and a few thunderstorms spreading in late tomorrow night and through most of Saturday will provide around half an inch of rain areawide, with higher amounts possible.
Rain will slowly come to an end Sunday morning, with a few showers lingering into the afternoon south of I-94 and east of 131.
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