Bean crop to benefit most from weekend rain

Berne Tri-Weekly News:

It was like "grant money from the heavens" on Saturday evening and Sunday morning when between two and four inches of rain fell on area fields. Millions of dollars dropped on the parched Indiana crop with a special blessing for the state's bean crop.

Locally, rainfall amounts varied, ranging from two inches in the southern parts of the county to nearly four inches in the Monroe area, and three inches reported in the extreme eastern part of the county. Regardless of the amount, all farmers were speaking in terms of "great blessing" as they gathered in the foyers of their churches before worship on Sunday morning.

The rainfall was actually a product of three storm complexes. A quick forming line of thundershowers passed over the area late in the afternoon, dropping anywhere from a couple of tenths of an inch to nearly a half inch in some areas. Then, later in the evening, a much stronger punch hit the county, this time with one to two inches of rain accompanied by strong gusty winds that included a tornado warning for the central part of the county for a few minutes.