Rain exits Minnesota Thursday; air quality alert in Arrowhead from wildfire smoke

Scattered showers will linger through Thursday afternoon with a few rumbles of thunder possible in the Twin Cities.

Highs will be in the mid 70s with drier and warmer conditions by the evening hours.

Sunshine returns on Friday with temperatures climbing into the 80s. The metro will likely be dealing with some wildfire smoke, too.

Saturday will be mostly sunny, warm and dry with highs in the mid 80s.

Sunday will be another dry, sunny day with heat building toward 90 degrees.

The peak of the warm-up arrives on Monday, with highs around 90 and plenty of sunshine.

Air quality alerts issued in northern Minnesota

Air quality alerts are effect through Friday evening in St. Louis, Lake and Cook counties due to smoke from wildfires in Manitoba, Canada.

The smoke could linger near the shores of Lake Superior on Thursday evening into Friday, according to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. The "red" alert indicates the air is unhealthy for everyone. Sensitive groups should avoid heavy exertion and limit time spent outdoors.

Last week's rain eased drought in central Minnesota

The rain last week eased the more moderate drought and abnormally dry conditions across central Minnesota. However, there wasn't much benefit elsewhere.

Now, roughly 15% of the state is in a moderate drought — down from 18% last week and 67% three months ago — but more than 72% of the state is abnormally dry.