Updraft® - Minnesota Weather News

Minnesota finally gets a drink: widespread rain showers bring much-needed precipitation

Rain totals for Saturday, Aug 29
Rain totals for Saturday, Aug 29.
Community, collaborative rain, hail and snow network- CoCoRaHS

Welcomed rainfall arrived late Friday night into early Saturday, with some notable totals stacking up across Minnesota.

Areas around the state picked up several inches

We almost forgot what rain felt or looked like, it’s been that long. Mother Nature finally delivered a healthy drink across the state, and some of the numbers coming in are catching our attention.

West-central Minnesota was one of the big winners, with 3-plus inches reported around Vergas and Lake Park, while several locations in the Perham and Richville areas picked up close to or more than 3 inches.

Rain totals for Saturday, Aug 29
Rain totals for Saturday, Aug 29.
Community, collaborative rain, hail and snow network- CoCoRaHS

The Iron Range and portions of central Minnesota also saw well over an inch of rain, providing some much-needed relief to areas that have been among the hardest hit by drought.

Rainfall in northeastern Minnesota
Rainfall in northeastern Minnesota.
National Weather Service

Even southwestern Minnesota got in on the action, with Pipestone recording more than 3 inches of rain. That's particularly noteworthy because this area had just been upgraded to extreme drought on the most recent drought monitor.

Drought monitor 8-25-26
Drought monitor 8-25-26.
National Drought Mitigation Center

Will this rain erase our drought? Not even close.

But it was a very welcomed drink for our dry topsoils. After weeks of dry conditions, several inches of rain in some areas is a big win.