September proved to be a month of wetter-than-normal weather for much of Iowa. State climatologist Harry Hillaker says the average rainfall for the month is around three-and-a-half inches, while this September, Iowa saw a statewide average of four inches of rain.

Hillaker says the distribution of rain was "quite irregular" as parts of north-central and northeastern Iowa were much drier than normal while other areas, like the far southeast, were much wetter than normal with nearly a foot of rain. As for temperatures during the month, Hillaker says we evened out to nearly average, though there were extremes on both ends.

In southeast Iowa, Keosauqua was Iowa’s hottest spot during the month with a high of 92-degrees on September 2nd. On the low end, the northwest Iowa town of Sibley recorded 32-degrees for the state’s low temp during the month on September 15th. He says virtually all of Iowa avoided a freeze during the month, which is fortunate, given many farmers had late plantings due to the flooding earlier in the year.

For the month ahead, Hillaker says October’s precipitation is a toss-up, as computer models have shown it being both a wetter and drier-than-normal month. He says temperatures should be around normal for October, though there will be extremes of hot and cold. The first frost in Iowa is normally reported on or around September 27th.