Brittney J. Miller
Cedar Rapids Gazette
Several winter storms have barreled through the Midwest since the start of the year, bringing deep snow and bitter cold. In Iowa, where treacherous roads caused hundreds of accidents, snowpack grew up to 20 inches in some places — marking a winter with 180 percent more precipitation than normal, so far.
This week’s storm reached all the way down to Memphis, where the mayor declared a state of emergency after six inches of snow snarled traffic and freezing temperatures caused at least two deaths. Meantime, schools and offices were closed in New Orleans and Baton Rouge this week due to several days of sub-zero weather in the south.
The snow comes on the heels of several years of drought that has left parts of the Mississippi River basin with rainfall deficits of a foot-plus.
Several more inches of snow are forecast in the Midwest this week. Next week, higher temperatures should melt some of the recent snow and ice. As it melts, that water will bleed into parched waterways in Iowa and beyond, helping restore stream flows decimated by drought. It could also carry the risk of flooding downstream.