Written By: John Wheeler | May 23rd 2019 – 6am.
Weather is naturally variable and a climate will always have its ups and downs.
For more than 25 years, the climate of eastern North Dakota and northwestern Minnesota has been generally wet with relatively few droughts. The water table, bolstered by heavier precipitation, has been consistently high. Flooding has been more frequent than in times past.
Although it seems hard to believe based on the present weather trend, the Red River has actually stopped flowing through Fargo and Moorhead several times, most notably in the early 1910s and mid-1930s. It also slowed to a virtual trickle in the fall of 1970. More recently, in the back-to-back summers of 1988 and 1989, the Red dropped to a low enough level that the city of Fargo severely restricted water usage.
It is impossible to know when the next drought will happen, but it is certain that there will be a next drought.