2022 has been wet, but how does it compare to 2021?

Five and a half months into 2022 and we have already received more precipitation than we did in the entirety of 2021. 

Scott Kehler, President, and Chief Scientist at Weatherlogics says the Kleefeld Weather Station, which is used for Steinbach, recorded a total of 361 millimeters of precipitation in 2021.  

Kehler says we've already surpassed that amount this year. 

“If we include all of the rain until noon on Tuesday we have 381 millimetres so far in 2022. Until the end of June 2021, there was only 114 millimetres so this spring and early summer has been off to a very wet start both compared to last year and compared to normal.” 

And what is normal? Kehler notes “Through the end of June, normal precipitation is 203 millimetres at Kleefeld and so this year so far, we are about 180 millimetres above that normal and June isn't even over yet. For the year as a whole, about 446 millimetres would be normal so we are still below number for the year but we are not even halfway through.” 

The data for 2022 includes precipitation up to June 14th

Kehler says we would need the second half of 2022 to be one of the driest on record to prevent 2022 from being wetter then normal as a whole. 

From severe drought conditions to a flood, Kehler says these last few years have been highly unusual. 

“We saw the third snowiest winter on record in parts of Southern Manitoba and then we got one of our wettest springs on record and the rain continues here in June. That is in great contrast to the last few years, especially 2020 and 2021 which were both very dry years.” 

While we needed moisture to replenish what we lost over the last two years, Kehler says "we went straight from a drought to a flood and so now we are having the complete opposite problem with many farmers having trouble getting on their fields and homeowners having to deal with flooded basements.”