June 12-18, 2002: Heavy Rain Axis Moves over the Central Midwest.

There was a pause and relocation of heavy rains out of Minnesota the week of June 12-18, with the stationary boundary and associated storms sagging southward over Missouri and Illinois (Figure 14). The precipitation totals for the week exceeded 3-5 inches in northeastern Missouri and west central Illinois, with a smaller maximum of about 2 inches in northeastern Michigan. Both regions exceeded 200% of normal precipitation for the week, while parts of Minnesota were well below 50% of normal (Figure 15). This change of events was greatly appreciated by the residents of flood-torn northwestern Minnesota, but also caused a return of flood to the central Midwest. Temperatures for the week were below normal (Figure 16), as a large upper level low kept clouds over much of the eastern and central Midwest for several days after the rainy period. The dryness in Minnesota was not good news everywhere, as the central and northeastern parts of the state that missed the huge rain totals the previous week were placed in the abnormally dry category of the U.S. Drought Monitor (Figure 17, NDMC).

The new week began with rain continuing through the night from the 11th into the 12th, bringing flash flooding to much of northeastern Missouri and west central Illinois. Precipitation amounts (including the 11th) exceeded 5 inches in some place overnight (Figure 18, NWS). On the following day, conditions were once again ripe for convection along the boundary as a short wave traveled into the region. Another several inches of rain fell in the second event (Figure 19, NWS). The storm system became mobile after training overnight, and moved out through eastern Illinois into Indiana and Ohio later on the 13th (Figure 20, NWS). The precipitation event caused substantial flooding in areas just recovering from previous heavy rain events in May and early June, and thus causing many farmers in flooded lowlands to give up on planting the bottomland this year. The South Fork of the Sangamon River once again reached 10 feet above flood stage at Rochester, IL (Figure 21, U.S. Geological Survey - USGS), and ruined any chances of farming close to the water this year. After the 13th, the week passed pretty quietly under the influence of high pressure to the south, although several days were cloudy, cool, and showery in much of the Midwest due to wrap-around precipitation and instability cloud decks due to a cold upper level low.