After steady rain hit Michigan on Sunday, helping ease the drought brought by a so far dry fall, this week will see more rain and find cooler, more traditional fall weather, according to the National Weather Service.
Wind gusts and rain Sunday brought double-digit waves to Lakes Huron and Michigan, and most of Lake Huron is under a gale warning until early Monday, according to the weather service. Most of southern Michigan saw 1-2 inches of rain Saturday and Sunday, though the eastern areas from Monroe to downtown Detroit got a half inch or less.
Some totals by community as of Sunday evening:
–Beal City, 1.66 inches of rain
–Mount Pleasant, 1.17 inches
–St. Charles, 1.41 inches
–Oakley, 1.6 inches
–Ortonville, 1.79 inches
–Okemos, 1.86 inches
–Waterford Township, 1.43 inches
–Clarkston, 1.5 inches
–East Lansing, 2.05 inches
–Albion, 1.82 inches
–Holt, 1.44
Cooler temperatures arrive in the region this week, with highs in the 50s and 60s.
Monday is expected to reach a high of near 62 in Detroit and winds up to 10 mph, according to the National Weather Service. There is a chance of rain after 2 a.m. Tuesday, and rain may continue into the day. Wind gusts may reach 26 mph, with a partly sunny sky and a high near 61.
Showers are likely again Wednesday, with rain starting around 2 a.m., according to the NWS. There’s a 70% chance of rain all day, with a mostly cloudy sky and a high of 52. Thursday also will have a chance of showers, but by Friday and Saturday, the weather is expected be back to mostly sunny.
Jaclyn Anderson, a meteorologist at the weather service, said the weekend’s rainfall provided some drought relief to Michigan.
“It won’t catch us up completely, but it’ll definitely be a help,” she said.
More than 40% of the state is in a drought, and an additional 20% is abnormally dry, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor, a service provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
Central Michigan between Saginaw Bay and Pentwater is considered to be in a severe drought.
mjohnson@detroitnews.com
