A rainy weekend ahead for much of Wisconsin

Rain is the forecast for much of the state this weekend. That should please many farmers and gardeners, and will help out some water bills. Unseasonably warm weather and a lack of rain has made for some pretty dry lawns and fields. Scott Berschback is a Meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Green Bay. “Most of the state is between an inch and a half and maybe two inches below normal for precipitation this month.”

Berschback says the forecasted rain this weekend will probably not entirely fix the situation, but it will help. “It’s looking very favorable for showers and thunderstorms across the area tonight through the weekend,” he says. “There’s a frontal boundary that’ll be passing through the state that’ll be the focus for showers and thunderstorms that spread west to east across the state. We’re expecting quite a few showers and storms, general rainfall amount between one-half and one-inch are likely across much of the state. But of course, with the nature of thunderstorms some of those amounts could be lower in some locations and also higher in other locations.”

Berschback says there’s also a good chance of rain next week. He says the one area of the state that *has* gotten some rain recently is northwestern Wisconsin. Berschback says portions of that area have gotten a good soaking in the last day or so.

The USDA reports this week that 56-percent of Wisconsin crop lands are in need of a good rain. However, most of Wisconsin is still fairing better than other Midwestern states like Iowa, Illinois, and portions of Minnesota which are in a minor to moderate drought.