Drought in the south, deluge in the north: A Sask. summer

Saskatchewan is living up to its license plate this summer, with drought and heavy rainfall dominating different parts of the province this summer.

There’s barely been any rain in the Regina area, with just 1.8 millimetres in July and 11.1 millimetres so far in August.

“Normally August brings about 44.8 millimetres of rain,” said Terri Lang, an Environment Canada meteorologist. “That ranks as the 12th driest August that we have on record.”

But in some parts of the province, the weather has been anything but dry.

“It’s been an incredibly varied province,” she said, noting northern parts of Saskatchewan were drenched by rain.

Lang said Meadow Lake saw 91.5 millimetres of rain in July — a record for the area — and 35.5 millimetres so far in August.

“We usually don’t see that much of a discrepancy,” she said.

Lang said this summer’s weather can all be attributed to the jet stream, which tends to carry weather systems with rain along it.

This summer the jet stream has brought moisture from Alberta to north-central Saskatchewan, accounting for the divide.

She also reminded residents weather patterns fluctuate, pointing to flood conditions in the same areas experiencing drought this year.

As for the rest of 2017, Lang said hot and dry weather is expected to continue into the fall.