Friday, July 15, 2005

Statewide Drought Emergency Declared

Governor Doyle announced a statewide drought emergency today, with parts of southern Wisconsin in moderate and extreme drought conditions. Since April 1st, Madison has received only 7.60 inches of rain which is 5.39 inches below the normal for this period, the second driest such period on record. Sheboygan and Kenosha had their driest April 1st to July 15th period on record, but due to rainfall in the last few days, Milwaukee only had their 10th driest such period, still near long-term drought conditions though.

Because of the extremely dry conditions, the fire danger will be elevated for at least the next few days.

Unfortunately, there's just a chance for rain on Monday, and after that it may be dry for several more days. In addition, there should be a brief cooldown for Monday and Tuesday, but by next Wednesday through Friday it could be back into the 90s.

The counties along Lake Michigan have been spared the hot weather the last few days that the rest of the state experienced because of a persistent easterly flow on the back side of the remnants of Dennis. However, Lake Michigan is so warm now, about 72 degrees adjacent to Milwaukee, that the lake has begun to keep the lakeshore counties warmer at night. The lows in Milwaukee the last three mornings with the easterly flow off the lake have been 69, 68, 70, and 70, while in Madison the lows for those days have been 65, 65, 66, and 58. With Dennis continuing to weaken and move away, and a weak front approaching from the west bringing a southerly flow to the entire state, expect the effects of Lake Michigan to decrease this weekend for the lakeshore counties. Afternoon temperatures will begin to climb to near the levels that the rest of the state has been experiencing.

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