DOWNTOWN — The rule is April showers bring May flowers, but in Chicago, we don't always follow the rules — especially when it comes to the weather, which this month was twice as rainy as normal.
"It certainly has been rainier this year. Since the seventh of June, there has been six completely rain-free days," said John Gresiak, a meteorologist for Accuweather.com. "And June is a fairly wet month compared to other months, but about half of those days should be rain-free days, roughly 10-13 days."
Apparently this year, Mother Nature thought it'd be better if those April showers brought May showers and those May showers also brought some June showers. In May, we received 4.66 inches of rain compared to our normal average of 3.8, Gresiak said.
According to Gresiak and the National Weather Service, Chicago received 6.18 inches of rainfall in June, about 3.27 inches more than the average June rainfall of 2.91 inches.
Those June showers will likely continue next month, Gresiak said.
"This pattern extends back to May, which was also a wetter May than usual. It's a little early to say, but certainly right now the pattern shows wet weather will continue through the first part of July," Gresiak said.
The heavy rainfall has meant a slow start for the some of the boat companies lining the Chicago Riverwalk. On a good day boats for Shoreline Sightseeing take over 100 people on tours of the city, but on cloudy days like Friday afternoon they dwindle to about 40, said Anelle Romero, an employee for the company.
"We still go out and get people on the boats, but not the same as when it's not rainy. It definitely feels like we're not having a summer this year, for sure," Romero said.
Wendella Boats, whose boats are partially covered, said they've been able to work through the weather: "[Customers] change the date or just go inside. We really haven't had to cancel our boats at all," a spokeswoman for the company said.
According to the National Weather Service, the higher-than-average rainfall was a result of eight thunderstorms in June registered at O'Hare Airport and will continue this week. Showers are expected Friday night along with a chance of more thunderstorms Sunday. Scattered showers are forecasted every day from Monday to Thursday next week.
According to the US Army Corps of Engineers, Lake Michigan has risen 13 inches from last year.
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