Melting Snow Leads to Spring Flooding

Throughout the far northern United States, significant Winter snow accumulates and remains on the ground for several months.  During the Spring season, that snow begins to melt and rain begins to fall.  In places like the northern Rockies, Upper Midwest, and northern New England, streams and rivers begin to rise.  Flooding is a common occurrence every  year. The end of April will be a bit waterlogged in many areas.  With several systems passing through the Northeast, rain may accumulate between 0.5 and 2 inches through Saturday.  Parts of Maine and New Hampshire are under a Flood Watch. While precipitation is not expected to be widespread in the Upper Midwest over the next few days, mild temperatures will melt the lingering snow and ice.  Northern areas of Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan will experience some flooding concerns. With feet of snow still on the ground in the Rocky Mountains region, flooding will impacts states such as Montana into May. Mountain locations will climb into the 50s and 60s with lower elevations rising into the 70s and 80s by the weekend.  The above average warmth will accelerate the snowmelt. Rainy weather will also add to the flooding threat in the Northwest and High Plains through the weekend and into early next week. For more forecast information and interesting weather tidbits, follow WeatherNation on Facebook and Twitter. -Meteorologist Joe Astolfi