April 2003 Saint Cloud Weather Summary

Subject: Saint Cloud Weather Summary for April 2003

"I've Seen Fire, I've Seen Rain"

     April 2003 came in as a desert and went out as a swamp. The total April precipitation was 4.73 inches, more than double the normal April rainfall of 2.13 inches. The April rainfall was the 7th heaviest in the 111 Aprils on record in Saint Cloud. While the April 2003 rainfall ranks as the 7th highest on record, April 2001, with 8.42 inches of precipitation still ranks, by far, as the wettest April on record. (Link to Top 10 Rainiest Aprils)

     All but .04 inch fell between 11 PM April 15th and the morning of April 21st. The precipitation began with a series of heavy thunderstorms from 11 PM April 15th into the early morning hours of April 16th. The thunderstorms finally gave way to a steady, lighter rain during the daylight morning hours, then changed to a moderate, wind-blown sleet by about 11:30 AM. The sleet persisted all afternoon and into the early evening, before tapering to occasional freezing rain. The daily rainfall on both April 16 and 17 set daily precipitation records. The sleet also accumulated to 1.5 inches. Since sleet accumulation (as well as hail accumulation) counts as snowfall, the April 17 daily snowfall record also fell. (All daily April records can be found here.)

     The maximum 24-hour precipitation during April 15-16 came to a total of 3.54 inches. This total ranks as the 10th highest 24-hour precipitation event in Saint Cloud history and the 6th largest event recorded at Saint Cloud State University. (Jump to Top 10 24-Hour Precipitation Events) This marks the third event in the past 9 months that has made the SCSU top ten. While the SCSU period of record is shorter, the rainfalls were heavy enough to have made the Airport list if they had been recorded there.

     The heavy mid-April rainfall brought an end to the surface water drought that had plagued the cold season. While ground water levels were high from last year's heavy rainfall, the frozen, bare ground posed a high fire danger, especially during the warm, windy weather experienced during April 9-15. The heavy rain, and subsequent greening, has eased the relatively short-term dry period in much of the state, but northern Minnesota, which missed both the mid-April rains and some heavy rains last summer, is suffering from a 16-month shortfall. For more details, see the Minnesota State Climatologist's Office summary of the cold season dry spell.

     The sleet accumulation on April 17th was the primary contributor to the April total snowfall of 2.0 inches. This total is close to the normal amount of 2.3 inches and is a far cry from last year's near-record snowfall of 15.3 inches. (Link to Top 10 Snowiest Aprils) The April snowfall brings the seasonal total to 32.0 inches. This total is about 75% of the normal seasonal snowfall (45.5 inches) through the end of April. (Link to 2002-2003 Seasonal Snowfall by Month)

April 2003 Statistics

Heaviest 24-Hour Melted Precipitation Events in Saint Cloud History