DES MOINES, Iowa — A very soggy week is ahead across the Central Plains with total rainfall forecasts through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19, 2026 showing extraordinary accumulations across a wide swath of Iowa, Nebraska, Minnesota and surrounding states. Des Moines, Iowa leads all cities at 5.58 inches of total forecast rainfall, with Storm Lake, Iowa close behind at 5.09 inches and Omaha, Nebraska at 4.89 inches. This is a multi-day, region-wide rainfall event with flooding concerns that will build progressively through the week.
Full City-by-City Total Rainfall Forecast Through 7:00 AM CT Saturday September 19
Here are the exact total rainfall forecasts visible on the Saturday, September 13, 2026 forecast map for each labeled city through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19, 2026:
- Des Moines, Iowa is forecast to receive 5.58 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19, the highest total shown on the forecast map and placing Des Moines at severe flooding risk through the week.
- Storm Lake, Iowa is forecast to receive 5.09 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19, 2026, sitting within the darkest purple zone on the forecast map indicating the most extreme rainfall totals.
- Omaha, Nebraska is forecast to receive 4.89 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19, placing this major metro area at serious flood risk through the week.
- Cedar Rapids, Iowa is forecast to receive 5.28 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19, 2026, one of the highest totals on the entire map and confirming the extreme rainfall footprint across Iowa.
- Davenport, Iowa is forecast to receive 3.74 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19.
- Sioux City, Iowa is forecast to receive 2.53 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19, 2026.
- Mankato, Minnesota is forecast to receive 2.53 inches through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19.
- Rochester, Minnesota is forecast to receive 3.82 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19, 2026.
- La Crosse, Wisconsin is forecast to receive 3.82 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19.
- Minneapolis, Minnesota is forecast to receive 2.74 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19, 2026.
- Eau Claire, Wisconsin is forecast to receive 2.74 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19.
- Wausau, Wisconsin is forecast to receive 2.53 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19, 2026.
- Madison, Wisconsin is forecast to receive 3.10 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19.
- Milwaukee, Wisconsin is forecast to receive 2.07 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19, 2026.
- Appleton, Wisconsin is forecast to receive 2.07 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19.
- Rockford, Illinois is forecast to receive 3.33 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19, 2026.
- Chicago, Illinois is forecast to receive 2.66 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19.
- Beatrice, Nebraska is forecast to receive 4.08 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19, 2026.
- Maryville, Missouri is forecast to receive 4.61 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19.
- Trenton, Missouri is forecast to receive 4.16 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19, 2026.
- Kansas City, Missouri is forecast to receive 2.88 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19.
- Columbia, Missouri is forecast to receive 0.74 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19, 2026.
- Norfolk, Nebraska is forecast to receive 1.55 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19.
- Huron, South Dakota is forecast to receive 1.11 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19, 2026.
- Brookings, South Dakota is forecast to receive 1.40 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19.
- Worthington, Minnesota is forecast to receive 1.83 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19, 2026.
- Pierre, South Dakota is forecast to receive 0.81 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19.
- Winner, South Dakota is forecast to receive 0.67 inches through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19, 2026.
- North Platte, Nebraska is forecast to receive 1.02 inches through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19.
- Kearney, Nebraska is forecast to receive 1.77 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19, 2026.
- McCook, Nebraska is forecast to receive 1.02 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19.
- Hays, Kansas is forecast to receive 1.61 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19, 2026.
- Salina, Kansas is forecast to receive 2.46 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19.
- St. Louis, Missouri is forecast to receive 0.01 inches of total rainfall through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19, 2026.
- Springfield, Missouri is forecast to receive 0.53 inches through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19.
- Quincy, Illinois is forecast to receive 1.77 inches through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19, 2026.
- Peoria, Illinois is forecast to receive 1.83 inches through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19.
- Champaign, Illinois is forecast to receive 0.42 inches through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19, 2026.
- Lafayette, Indiana is forecast to receive 0.49 inches through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19.
- Dodge City, Kansas is forecast to receive 1.66 inches through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19, 2026.
- Garfield, Kansas area is forecast to receive 0.44 inches through 7:00 AM CT Saturday, September 19.
Why Iowa Bears the Brunt of This Rainfall Event
The forecast map shows a concentrated bull’s-eye of extreme rainfall centered directly over Iowa, with Des Moines at 5.58 inches, Cedar Rapids at 5.28 inches and Storm Lake at 5.09 inches all clustered within the darkest purple zone on the map. This concentration of rainfall over Iowa through a multi-day period creates conditions for significant river flooding, agricultural damage and urban flash flooding across the state that will build progressively through the week as each rain event adds to already saturated soils…