June 2014 Saint Cloud Weather Summary

Soggy Start to Summer is Too Much of a Good Thing

June 2014 Saint Cloud Weather Summary

Central and Southern Minnesota ended up the growing season of 2013 way behind on rainfall, so some extra rain this spring has been important in recharging soils. However, June is when catching up got out of control. Many portions of Minnesota ended up with 5-7 inches of rainfall with southwestern Minnesota and some areas to the west of the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area getting more than 10 inches of rain for the month.

Wettest June in 24 Years

St. Cloud was among those affected by the deluge. The St. Cloud Regional Airport had its third straight month with more than 5.9 inches of rain as June precipitation totaled 6.18 inches, about 2 inches higher than the average monthly total of 4.17 inches. While this total was more than an inch and a half short of the 10 wettest Junes in St. Cloud records, June 2014 was the wettest June since the deluge of June 1990, when 10.52 inches fell. That's St. Cloud's fifth wettest month of all time.

Wettest Jan-June, April-June in St. Cloud Records

The heavy rain in June was enough to push the precipitation in the first 6 months of 2014 to 22.53 inches, breaking the record for the wettest first 6 months of the year. The old record was 22.11 inches, set in 1920. The current total of 22.53 inches is also more than 10 inches above average (12.34 inches) and 81 percent of the average precipitation for the entire year (27.73 inches). Portions of the Twin Cities Metro area, southwestern and southeastern Minnesota have had between 25 and 30 inches of rain (yellow), more than the annual average.

During the growing season so far (April 1-June 30), the Saint Cloud Regional Airport has picked up 18.82 inches, more than 9 inches above the average of 9.69 inches. This total broke the old record for April-June rainfall of 17.62 inches, set in 1894.

Result: Flooded Fields and Cities, High Lakes and Rivers

There were 5 major rainstorms that affected Minnesota in June, with three having a huge effect on Minnesota. The storm of May 31-June 2 produced about two and a quarter inches of rain at the St. Cloud Airport, but over 5 inches of rain in western Stearns County. The rainstorm of the 14 and 15th produced a daily rainfall total of two inches and near three inches of rain from the 14th through the 16th. There were more than 3 inches in Kandiyohi County. However, the storm that broke the daily record for rainfall in the Twin Cities on the 19th and dumped over 5 inches of rain in the southwestern portion of the Metro only produced about an inch of rain in St. Cloud.

Still, there was a lot more rain fairly close to the St. Cloud Airport. The total June SCSU rainfall was 9.65 inches.

St. Cloud hasn't had a week with less than 3 days of rain since May 19-25 (one day of rain, but 0.95 inch). There hasn't been a week with less than half an inch of rain since April 6-12 (0.17 inch). This has led to high water levels in lakes, many of which were recording record lows last fall, and rivers and dangerous boating conditions. Some of the June heavy rainfall has produced flooding farmland, which has begun to take its toll. Also, several lakes and rivers had to be dammed to limit flooding.

Persistent Rain Causes High Humidity and Low Temperatures

The cause of the heavy precipitation has been the stubborn positioning of the main storm track from the Northern Rockies, mainly just to the south of Minnesota and into the Carolinas. To the north of that area, a series of storms have pumped hot and sticky air over slightly drier air at the surface. On top of that, some of these storms have had relatively light winds aloft, meaning that slow-moving thunderstorms were able to douse some areas.

The persistent humid conditions led to a warmer than average June, only the second month since September 2013 with a warmer than average temperature. The June average at St. Cloud was 68.2°F, 2.8°F warmer than average. The humid conditions meant that much of this warmth was a result of the warm nighttime lows. The average low was 58.0°F, 4.4°F warmer than average and included 11 lows of 60 or greater and one low of 70 degrees (June 27). Those mild lows ended up producing 20 days with warmer than average temperatures. The highest temperature of the month was only 85 degrees. That wasn't as warm as the warmest May temperature of 87 degrees on the 30th. St. Cloud has yet to see 90 degrees this summer. Since 1990, only 1993, 2003, and this year have gotten to July without a 90-degree day.

The upcoming week looks to be a rare opportunity to dry out for a couple of days. However, that drying will come with relatively cool temperatures, so there won't be a 90-degree high through Independence Day.

    June 2014 Statistics