(Spirit Lake)– Click here for sound bite
If you’re among those dreaming of a white Christmas in northwest Iowa and southwest Minnesota, you’re going to have to dream on. For the first time since 2006, the region is going to be relegated to a brown Christmas. And while it may seem odd after being buried in snow at Christmas the past several years, Jen Hacker of the National Weather Service in Sioux Falls says a brown Christmas isn’t as unusual as we might think…Click here for sound bite
And Hacker says that lack of snow is also resulting in the warmer than normal temperatures for this time of year…Click here for sound bite
And Hacker says there are no signs of this pattern changing anytime soon…Click here for sound bite
Meanwhile, the continued trend of below normal precipitation that’s been persistent since late July is starting to cause concern…Click here for sound bite
Hacker says if the trend continues the rest of the winter, a large part of the region will go into the upcoming spring with a drought status.
In case you’re wondering, there was 13 inches of snow on the ground in the Iowa Great Lakes for Christmas in 2010.
