Rain gauges at Bush Field have recorded 9.75 inches this month, making it the wettest August in 70 years, beating out the previous record holder of August 1967, in which 8 inches was recorded.

Even more has been recorded at Dan­­iel Field, said Leonard Vaughan, of the National Weather Ser­vice in West Columbia, S.C. Gauges there have collected a little more than 11 inches this month, breaking records there, too, he said.

Forecasters are fairly confident that Isaac will add to that total before the month ends. The tropical storm, which is expected to strengthen to a hurricane before it makes landfall, will pull plenty of moisture out of the Gulf of Mexico, some of which will be deposited in Augusta when it meets up with a cold front swinging down from the Midwest, Vaughan said.

“The front will act as a nice lifting mechanism to get that precipitation going,” he said.

Vaughan said up to 2 inches of rain could fall in the area by Thursday.

It is a wet month, but it is still a dry year for Augusta. As of last week, Augusta was still about 5.5 inches below normal for yearly rainfall, continuing the drought conditions, Vaughan said.