To say May was wetter than normal would be a bit of an understatement. Weyburn and area saw just shy of 112 millimetres of rain. The 30-year average for the region is 51 millimetres.  

Kyle Fougere is a meteorologist with Environment and Climate Change Canada. He said part of the reason for the increase in precipitation coming from the Colorado lows has been the overall warming of the atmosphere. 

“The atmosphere is getting a little bit warmer, and it can hold more water, which then when you have these big low-pressure systems moving through, they can squeeze more out of the atmosphere,” Fougere explained. “Increased rainfall is something we are expecting to see as our climate changes. It’s not something we’d expect every year to see these crazy amounts.” 

The 30-year average from ECCC shows that the Weyburn area usually sees around 51 millimetres of rain in May. 

So, what does the summer hold for us? 

The seasonal forecast came out on Tuesday. 

“For the June, July, and August period, we are expecting it to be slightly below normal when it comes to the temperature in southeast Saskatchewan, and after this really wet spring that we just had, it is expected to be a little bit drier than normal,” Fougere added. 

The forecast for the first week of June from Environment Canada is calling for temperatures to be just below seasonal, with no rain in sight for the weekend.