“Preliminary data for Illinois indicate that June’s 3.49 inches of precipitation was 0.59 inches below normal. The driest region between Interstates 70 and 80 generally had 2.5 to 3.5 inches or even less at some locations, and rainfall in the Quincy area was near normal. Precipitation in northeastern and much of southern Illinois was above normal. Summertime rainfall just varies a lot,” says State Climatologist Jim Angel of the Illinois State Water Survey (http://www.sws.uiuc.edu), a division of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.

Soil moisture, streamflows, and shallow groundwater levels are much below normal in west-central Illinois. Despite the wet March and April with a combined total of 8.53 inches, 1.51 inches above normal, precipitation was below normal statewide in May and June. The largest deficits in western and central Illinois are up to 3 inches or more below normal.

“The 71.4°F statewide June temperature was 0.5°F below normal. Temperature extremes ranged from 40°F at Mt. Carroll on June 10 to 98°F at Hutsonville on June 21. Paris reported the heaviest one-day precipitation, 4.27 inches on June 19, and also the highest monthly total, 6.64 inches.

“If we get substantial rains weekly, such as those we’ve already had in July, we should be ok. Conditions in areas that were dry in May and June could deteriorate rapidly after even a week or two of hot, dry weather. The Water Survey is monitoring this closely and has a more detailed report on current conditions of water resources in Illinois on the Web (http://www.sws.uiuc.edu/hilites/drought/DTFSummary20060706.pdf),” concludes Angel.