For Immediate Release October 6, 2008
Two Tropical Systems Boost Illinois Rainfall in September
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The remains of Hurricanes Gustav and Ike boosted
rainfall totals in Illinois for September. September statewide precipitation was
8.0 inches, 4.8 inches above normal and the third wettest September on record, according
to State Climatologist Jim Angel of the Illinois State Water Survey (http://www.sws.uiuc.edu).
Combined with above-normal
precipitation since the start of 2008, the January-September total was 42.8 inches,
12.4 inches above normal and the second wettest January-September on record. Only
1993 was wetter with 42.9 inches.
The remains of
Hurricanes Gustav and Ike traveled a similar path, resulting in the heaviest
rains falling in a wide band that ranged from Quincy in western Illinois to
Chicago. Amounts within this band were in excess of 10 inches. Three sites
reported amounts in excess of 14 inches.
September statewide temperatures averaged 67 degrees, only one-half
a degree above normal.
"Average dates for the first time we hit 32 degrees in
the fall range from October 7 in northern Illinois and October 14 in central
Illinois, to October 21 in southern Illinois. The actual dates vary quite a bit
from year to year, but usually occur within two weeks
of the average. This year, a few sites in far northern Illinois have reached that
point already by the morning of October 4," concludes Angel.
The National Weather Service (NWS) forecasts for both the
month of October and the three-month October-December period call for equal
chances of above, below, or near-normal temperatures and precipitation.
The Illinois State Water Survey, at the University of
Illinois at Urbana-Champaign under the Institute of Natural Resource
Sustainability, is the primary agency in Illinois concerned with water and
atmospheric resources.
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Last Modified: November 05, 2008
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