Excessive heat and little rain have left the Borderland area experiencing drier than normal conditions.
Rick Hluchan, meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Duluth, said the majority of the state has seen significant rainfall; International Falls, however, has “lucked out.”
“International Falls usually gets less rain than the rest of the state, but this year, it has been quite a bit less,” he said.
The average rainfall for the month of July is just over 2 inches, this year, 1.76 inches of rain has fallen since July 1.
Hluchan said a wet pattern has been generous just off to the east of Borderland in the Arrowhead Region which has had 10-15 inches of rain this month.
“The state has received plenty of rain, there is just that hole up around the Falls,” he said.
The meteorologist added that year-to-date rainfall for Borderland is 13.29 inches, which is above the 13.12 annual average. Most of the rainfall accounted for came earlier in the year, he said.
“Last year at this time, things were pretty wet,” Hluchan continued. “We had 17.38 inches of rain for the year by the end of July last year.”
The pattern of dry conditions can be attributed to the warmer-than-normal temperatures the area experienced during the past few weeks.
“Wind is also a factor,” Hluchan said. “International Falls has had windy days which tends to dry things out.”
Fire danger
John Handrick, fire program forester with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, said last Friday and Saturday’s winds brought the odor of smoke from forest fires north of Lac Seul, Ont.
“With the winds we had over the weekend, we could smell the smoke from those fires,” Handrick explained. “There was some pretty significant activity up there.”
While extreme fire danger has been dodged in the area, Handrick said people who choose to burn anything should exercise good judgment and caution.
“Make sure you put your fires completely out,” he advised. “Especially out on the lake where campers use fire frequently. Be careful.”
Handrick added that if dry conditions continue, he is fearful of possible damage lightening could do.
“At this point, a lightening strike could give us some headache,” he said.
Hluchan told The Journal Tuesday that storms, some which could be severe, are predicted to be on the way.
“I Falls is right on the northern edge of a high pressure ridge that has been sitting over the country,” he said. “The edge is where storms hide, but they’ve been staying pretty south of the area. But, there is a pretty good chance the Falls will at least get some rain along with a storm or two.”
