The Platte River is not very river-like these days. Lack of rainfall has led to a dried riverbed. Polk County News Photos by Beth Sparrow-
Only a few puddles dot the river.
The Platte River, or rather Platte Riverbed, is so dry it is not running anywhere. There is a puddle here and there, but no one can fish, go tubing or tanking down the river. We are about five inches below “normal” on rainfall, along with farmers having to irrigate.
According to the National Weather Service, most of the county is in the “abnormally dry” category, with the part of the county in the north and near the river being in the “moderate drought” category. “Abnormally dry” means going into drought: short-term dryness slowing planting, growth of crops or pastures; fire risk above average. While “moderate drought” implies some damage to crops or pastures; fire risk high; streams, reservoirs or wells low, and some water shortages developing or imminent. The National Weather Service releases new updates to the drought on Thursdays on their website: www.weather.gov/gid Some towns have had water restrictions. The village of Polk has had occasional water restrictions.
Our forecast for the next few days looks like this:
THURSDAY: Partly cloudy. Lows in the lower 60s. Highs in the mid 80s. South winds around 5 mph.
FRIDAY: Partly cloudy. Lows in the lower 60s. Highs in the lower 80s. Southeast winds 5 to 10 mph.
SATURDAY: Mostly cloudy. Chance of showers and slight chance of thunderstorms. Lows in the mid 60s. Highs in the lower 80s. South winds 10 to 15 mph.
SUNDAY: Partly cloudy. Chance of showers and slight chance of thunderstorms. Lows in the lower 60s. Highs in the lower 80s. South winds 10 to 15 mph.
A small chance for showers and thunderstorms returns to parts of south central Nebraska north of Highway 92 late Wednesday night, with off and on small chances for thunderstorms possible across larger portions of the local area beginning Thursday night and continuing through next weekend. Despite the multiple chances for precipitation, some areas will likely not receive much, if any beneficial rainfall over the course of the next week.
