Extensive flooding in the US Midwest resulted from a combination of melting snow, a bomb cyclone storm, and climate change. Since the early 1900s, annual precipitation has ticked up by 15 to 20 percent in the Upper Midwest. Over 100 rivers hit major or moderate flood stages, with many reaching historic levels, forcing thousands Nebraska and Iowa residents to evacuate. The National Weather Service issued an emergency flash flood watch for parts of Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. This convergence of weather events was helped by a warm climate, which has increased rainfall by 40% since 1958.
Extensive flooding in the US Midwest resulted from a combination of melting snow, a bomb cyclone storm, and climate change. Over 100 rivers hit major or moderate flood stages, with many reaching historic levels, forcing thousands Nebraska and Iowa residents to evacuate. The National Weather Service issued an emergency flash flood watch for parts of Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. This convergence of weather events was helped by a warm climate, which has increased rainfall by 40% since 1958.