Brace Yourself for Flooding in Southern Idaho

As April comes to a close, there remain four feet of snow in the South Hills.  On Thursday, the thermometer hit 6o degrees in the higher reaches.  The next week will be even warmer.  We're not alone.  The Wood River Valley and Eastern Idaho are still buried in snow.  The meltdown could be the next installment in Fast and Furious.

We're going from one weather extreme to another.

In some places, you'll have plenty of warning about rising water.  Especially in those places where spring flooding is common.  What could be more troublesome is that in some places the water will end up behind an ice dam or a heavy blanket of snow.  When we see those dams collapse, watch out below!

First responders have been preparing for weeks for the runoff.

Meanwhile, much of Twin Falls County remains abnormally dry.  The U.S. Drought Monitor released its latest update this week.  The drought has been banished across the southern and eastern reaches of Idaho.  Many areas recently labeled abnormally dry have been removed from that designation.  Much of Cassia and Owyhee Counties are out of the woods.  Twin Falls County in the center is not as fortunate.

Snowmelt isn't expected to provide any relief when it comes to dry conditions, though.  It should be a huge plus when it comes to irrigation.  I've been told, and mentioned before, that south of the Snake River the water that falls tends to just be shed, leaving the southern part of the plain always dry.