A chilly Sunday; Update on rising river levels and flooding

Today we’ll take a baby step toward milder weather.

A nearby high pressure system will give us lighter winds today, and afternoon temps will be a few degrees warmer than Saturday’s temps in most locations. We’ll see improvement in our temperatures this coming week.

Temperature trends

The average Twin Cities high temperature is 60 degrees this time of year. Much of the metro area will see highs in the mid-40s Sunday afternoon.

Much of Minnesota and western Wisconsin will have Sunday highs in the 40s, with a few 30s in parts of northwestern Minnesota and far northeastern Minnesota.

Monday high temps reach the 40s in most of northern and central Minnesota, with lower 50s in parts of southern Minnesota.

Twin Cities metro area highs are projected to be around 50 degrees on Monday followed by lower 50s Tuesday then upper 50s Wednesday and around 60 on Thursday. Metro area highs retreat to the lower 50s on Friday.

Rain/snow showers?

There appears to be enough instability for a chance of very scattered snow showers in northern Minnesota and northwestern Wisconsin Sunday afternoon and evening. The remainder of Minnesota plus west-central Wisconsin will have a chance of very scattered sprinkles or light snow showers Sunday afternoon and evening.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s High-Resolution Rapid-Refresh (HRRR) forecast model shows the potential precipitation pattern from noon Sunday to 11 p.m. Sunday:

Pay more attention to the scattered nature of the precipitation than its exact location at any point in time.

You can find updated weather information for Minnesota and western Wisconsin on the MPR News network.

River levels

Rivers have reached flood stage in many parts of Minnesota and western Wisconsin, with rivers at major flood stage at some locations. Rivers will continue to rise in many locations this weekend and into next week.

You can check the river levels at various locations in northern Minnesota and northwestern Wisconsin here.

This is how the linked map looked Sunday morning:

You can find info on river levels elsewhere in Minnesota and western Wisconsin here.
Here’s how the linked map looked Sunday morning:

You can zoom in on the linked map page and get detailed info on river levels at a specific location.

I should mention that river levels are measured in relation to the height above a local benchmark. In some locations, river levels are listed in feet above sea level.

You can find info on river levels in eastern North Dakota and northwestern Minnesota here. Here’s how the linked map looked Sunday morning:

Here’s the hydrograph of recent, current and forecast levels for the Mississippi River at St. Paul:

The Mississippi River has reached major flood stage at St. Paul and it’s expected to rise another one and three-tenths feet between this morning and Thursday night, reaching 18.8 feet.

Here are the results of various river levels at the St. Paul gauge:

Here’s a pic of the Mississippi River floodwaters covering portions of Harriet Island Regional Park in St. Paul Sunday morning:

Here’s the area around the Clarence Wigington Pavilion at Harriet Island Regional Park Sunday morning:

The screen grabs were from St. Paul’s Mississippi River Camera page, which rotates among several different views of the river.

Here’s the hydrograph of recent, current and forecast levels for the St. Croix River at Stillwater, Minnesota:

The St. Croix River reached major flood stage of 89 feet at Stillwater on Saturday and is close to 89.1 feet Sunday morning. The St. Croix River is forecast to rise another 6/10ths of a foot between now and Tuesday.

Here are the results of various river levels at the Stillwater gauge:

Here are the historic St. Croix River crests at the Stillwater gauge:

Here’s the hydrograph of recent, current and forecast levels for the Red River at Fargo, North Dakota:

The Red River at Fargo crested just below major flood stage on Saturday and it is expected to lower by about one foot between now and Tuesday.

Programming note

You can hear my live weather updates on MPR News at 7:35 a.m., 9:35 a.m. and 4:39 p.m. each Saturday and Sunday.