Aren't the Rivers Running a Little Low?

The answer is YES. In fact, some rivers and streams in Kentucky are running near record low levels for late February. Streamflows (cubic feet per second) are well below normal at many locations. Here is today's map from the USGS:

Locations that are bright red are new record low flows for today. Darker red locations are below the 10th percentile. These low flows are seen in the Kentucky, Licking, Salt, and Green basins in the state.

Looking at the weekly flows on the Kentucky River at Frankfort shows how unusual it is to see the river this low in late February:

The black line is the observed weekly flow. The brown background is the 10th percentile. The dashed yellow line inside the brown area is the 5th percentile. You can see how rapidly the weekly flow has fallen during February.

This same low flow pattern can be seen in southern Indiana. These flows are expected to remain low through the rest of the month. Some long range models are showing some improvement in March.