As drought ravages the western U.S., Kentucky remains hydrated following a streak of soggy deluges this year.
Daviess and Muhlenberg County residents woke to flooded streets last week following a rainstorm that dropped four inches in some neighborhoods.
The National Weather Service recorded 3.53 inches of rain at the airport in Owensboro on Sept. 3, and a trained weather spotter recorded a total of four inches within 24 hours by 7 a.m. further east in the City.
Regionally, these heavy rain events are occurring more often. Owensboro received more than one inch of rainfall within 24 hours on three occasions in August and two times in June — including a 2.9-inch downpour on June 4, according to NWS.
“We’re not seeing more days with rain, but we’re seeing more rain on the days with rain,” state climatologist and Kentucky Mesonet director Stuart Foster said in June.
In June, July and August, Owensboro accumulated 15.41 inches of rainfall, which is 5.42 inches above average, according to Chris Noles, a meteorologist with NWS Paducah.
This year, Owensboro has received nearly 41 inches of precipitation. Counties within the Green River District have recorded similar volumes.
Muhlenberg County received 3.6 inches last Thursday morning, pushing them to about about 44.4 inches of rainfall this year, according to Kentucky Mesonet data. That is just shy of Ohio County’s 44.99 inches as the region’s highest annual total thus far.
Statewide, the annual average through Aug. 31 is estimated — as August data remains unofficial at this point — at about 43 inches. This puts the state on track to join the top five wettest years on record.
“If we continue at the current pace, we will threaten the statewide record of 64.35 inches in 2011,” said Foster, who added that three of the five wettest years have occurred in the past decade.
NWS predicts slightly above-normal precipitation for September as the temperatures begin to cool down.
There’s a chance for showers and thunderstorms this weekend.
