Bloomington shattered a 126-year-old record for rain in the first half of summer.
Between June 1 and July 17, Bloomington was drenched with 17 inches of rain, including a massive storm that caused damage in downtown and outer lying areas in June.
Indianapolis received 13.8 inches of rain during this 46-day span, which is considered the first half of summer by the National Weather Service. It was the fourth highest total in the city’s history.
Ellettsville, and Freeman, which is in Owen County, both saw the highest rain totals of anywhere in the region during that time with 21 inches.
“We've had this ridge over the West, and that's caused us to, to be able to get some flow from the Gulf,” National Weather Service Meteorologist Aaron Updike said.
He attributes the warm air from the gulf with causing the recent pattern of thunderstorms.
“We had a drier April in May, which was actually probably a good thing,” Updike said. “At the time, we were a little worried about it, because it can sometimes signal drought in the summer.”
Chances for thunderstorms and rain fall increase from late Friday to the middle of next week.
