DES MOINES, IOWA — A heavy rain bullseye is setting up over parts of the Corn Belt next week, with BAM Weather projecting rainfall totals of 4 to 5 inches or more centered on Des Moines, Cedar Rapids and Omaha, even as the Northern Plains catches a brief 48 hour dry gap from Tuesday through Thursday.
A Heavy Rain Bullseye Sets Up Over Iowa and Nebraska
Rainfall projections for the period from 7 p.m. Central time September 15 through 7 p.m. September 17 show a concentrated area of heavy rain settling over central Iowa and eastern Nebraska, with totals reaching 4 to 5 inches or more in the core of the highlighted zone around Des Moines and Cedar Rapids. Surrounding that core, a broader band of 2 to 3 inch totals extends across Omaha, Lincoln and Topeka, reflecting a substantial rain event for a wide stretch of the central Plains and Corn Belt.
That kind of concentrated heavy rainfall, especially in a relatively compact geographic area, raises the potential for localized flooding and standing water in low-lying fields and roadways across the highlighted corridor.
Northern Plains Gets a Brief 48 Hour Dry Gap
While the heaviest rain sets up farther south, BAM Weather notes that a brief 48 hour dry gap is possible across the Northern Plains from Tuesday through Thursday next week. That window covers communities including Bismarck, Fargo, Minot and Grand Forks, offering a short but meaningful opportunity for dry conditions in a region where fieldwork and harvest activity continue to depend heavily on stretches of dry weather.
Although forecasters describe this dry gap as brief, its timing lines up well with the ongoing harvest push across the Northern Plains, giving producers in that area a window worth taking advantage of before conditions potentially turn unsettled again…