State climatologist Harry Hillaker says most of the state got more rain than normal in July. “Statewide averaging a little bit over six inches — and typically you get about four-point-two inches or rainfall during the month,” Hillaker says.

In Atlantic, at the KJAN Studios, we received 7.78” of rain during the month, which was 3.16” more than average. The most rain fell on July 11th (1.25″), July 17th (1.38″), July 19th (1.68″), and July 27th (1.5″). Hillaker says there was one area of the state that missed out on the extra rain.  Hillaker says “The far northwest corner along the South Dakota border, where some areas are only roughly about half the usual amount of rain up that way. And fortunately they had had fairly good rainfall earlier this season, but  got left out for the most part during July.”

All the rainy days were offset by the sunny ones when it came to the average temperature. “Overall averaged out to just two-tenths of a degree cooler than usual,” Hillaker says. “Had a couple of episodes of unusually cool weather, one to start off the first three or four days of the month where our temperatures were well below normal, a very cool Fourth of July for example.”

In Atlantic, the average high of 83 was 2.17-degrees cooler than the normal, while the average low of 62 was one degree cooler than normal. The warmest day was July 21st (92 degrees), while the coolest morning was the 17th (51 degrees). Hillaker says Iowa also had one week near the end of the month where high heat and humidity made it feel “pretty miserable” outside.

He says we had heat index of 110 degrees or higher four days in a row from the 20th to the 23rd.  The heat index factors in what it feels like with the heat and humidity combined. ” And the highest heat index reading of 119 degrees came in Shenandoah,” according to Hillaker. That was on July 21st.

(Radio Iowa/KJAN weather data)