This wet, cold weather does not bode well for the chances of flooding next spring.
Michelle O'Neill reports meteorologists at the National Weather Service in the Quad Cities are concerned because current, high river levels and precipitation this fall already point to an increased risk of spring flooding.
Hydrologist, Jessica Brooks, says the majority of rivers in the Mississippi River basin are above normal levels.
In addition, the soil is saturated, and it probably won't have a chance to dry out before spring.
Brooks also says the winter outlook is for normal to above normal amounts of rain and snow.
"If you have something you'd like to get done before the next flood, you might want to think about getting it done now rather than waiting. We're not saying get resources together [to fight high water]. We're not confident in that yet."
Some people are still recovering from this year's record-breaking flood along the Mississippi River.
So Brooks and the other meteorologists at the National Weather Service office in Davenport will keep a close eye on factors such as, winter and spring precipitation, the water content of snowfall, how fast it melts, and frost depth.
NWSQuadCitiesAdvancedSpring... by Michelle O'Neill on Scribd
