The month of May has been dry in Weyburn. Just 6.3mm of precipitation has been recorded, leaving many farmers wondering when the rains will come.

John Paul Cragg, a regional meteorologist with Environment Canada, says the month of May generally has a wild fluctuation in terms of precipitation from year to year, but moths that are this dry are rare.

“In 2009, Weyburn only saw 13.6 millimetres,” Cragg explained. “You have to look back to 1998 before you see a May that was drier.” Only 0.2 millimetres of precipitation was recorded by Environment Canada in 1998. On average, Weyburn receives 56.8 millimetres of rain in May.

Not every part of the southeast has been lacking rain, though. Cragg pointed out Estevan, just 84 kilometres away from Weyburn, has received just over 42 millimetres of rain. “It’s a big difference for such a small area.”

Drying out the region further has been the incessant winds in the month of May. According to Cragg, this has been the windiest May in roughly 11 years.

While the month of May has been extremely dry, there is some precipitation expected in the coming days. Cragg said the models show a good chance for rain to fall on Weyburn by the weekend. From there, we can expect localized precipitation in the form of storms, as the southeast can receive a number of them during the summer.