By Associated Press - Friday, January 31, 2014

JOHNSTON, Iowa (AP) - The frost has reached down more than 25 inches into the soil in a Des Moines suburb.

The National Weather Service says the frost is deeper in Johnston than it’s been in the past five years that the data have been collected.

Rob DeRoy of the weather service told Des Moines television station KCCI (https://bit.ly/1jSivSk ) that part of the reason for the deeper frost this year is the lack of snow cover. The snow helps insulate the ground from the near-zero and subzero temperatures.

The frost could pose a problem when spring rains arrive.

Weather service hydrologist Jeff Zogg says water can’t soak in when there’s a barrier of frost. So the rain runs off, increasing the flood risk.

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Information from: KCCI-TV, https://www.kcci.com

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