Welcomed Rain Coming, But Drought Still Persists

We saw scattered showers and thunderstorms across the Mississippi and Illinois Valleys Thursday morning. Some hometowns in Knox and Henry counties in Illinois picked up more than an inch of rain.

More showers and storms are possible today, tonight, and, again, Friday night and Saturday. Generally speaking, rainfall amounts of one-half to more than an inch of rain are expected. However, as with any thunderstorm, there will be isolated higher totals.

While this rain is definitely needed and appreciated, it won't end our drought. Here is the latest update from the U.S. Drought Monitor report that came out this morning.



This shows that much of Iowa and west-central Illinois are still experiencing moderate to severe drought conditions.

Unfortunately, I'm not able to give you the specific percentages.  This is what pops up on NOAA's website when I try to access that information:

Due to the Federal government shutdown,
NOAA.gov and most associated web sites
are unavailable.

Only web sites necessary to protect lives
and property will be maintained.

CBS4 Meteorologist Anthony Peoples