Yellowstone floods while much of America wilts in heat
Floodwaters at their highest level in nearly a century swept through Yellowstone National Park.
This cabin on the bank was swept away into the torrent of water and into the Yellowstone River. Roads were washed out making much of the northern part of the park inaccessible for the remainder of the summer.
Much of the region here has been locked in drought for months even as days of rain and rapid snowmelt wrought havoc on southern Montana and northern Wyoming.
The look at weekly rain shows continued precipitation in the Upper Plains, extending east towards Ohio.
In Iowa, a heavy band of showers flooded fields as some locations experienced five inches of rain in just a short period of time. This area near Ames was inundated mid-week.
Just hours before, extreme heat hit the same region. Temps nearing the century mark were common with more in the forecast. More than 100 million Americans were under advisement to stay indoors in regions from the Gulf Coast to the Great Lakes and east towards the Carolinas.
Drought is still a main concern for the West as conditions have gotten worse. However, the entire continental U.S. had the lowest reading of drought since September with just over 57 percent of the country in some form of drought.
For Market to Market, I’m Josh Buettner.
Contact: josh@iowapbs.org
Transcript
Floodwaters at their highest level in nearly a century swept through Yellowstone National Park.
This cabin on the bank was swept away into the torrent of water and into the Yellowstone River. Roads were washed out making much of the northern part of the park inaccessible for the remainder of the summer.
Much of the region here has been locked in drought for months even as days of rain and rapid snowmelt wrought havoc on southern Montana and northern Wyoming.
The look at weekly rain shows continued precipitation in the Upper Plains, extending east towards Ohio.
In Iowa, a heavy band of showers flooded fields as some locations experienced five inches of rain in just a short period of time. This area near Ames was inundated mid-week.
Just hours before, extreme heat hit the same region. Temps nearing the century mark were common with more in the forecast. More than 100 million Americans were under advisement to stay indoors in regions from the Gulf Coast to the Great Lakes and east towards the Carolinas.
Drought is still a main concern for the West as conditions have gotten worse. However, the entire continental U.S. had the lowest reading of drought since September with just over 57 percent of the country in some form of drought.
For Market to Market, I’m Josh Buettner.