Storms have helped improve air quality in East Idaho in recent days, and they’ve also brought rain, cooler temperatures and even some U.S. Army helicopters to the area.

Four Apache attack helicopters were grounded due to visibility and weather issues while en route from Washington State to Kansas this week. They stopped at the airport in Soda Springs on Wednesday and then made their way to the airport in Pocatello, where they remained on Thursday, according to officials there.

A low pressure system over northeast Nevada helped spread rain throughout East and central Idaho on Thursday, according to officials with the National Weather Service forecast office in Pocatello.

Meteorologist John Keyes said a circular area from roughly Fort Hall to Holbrook, Idaho, to Freedom and Alpine in Wyoming, received anywhere from 0.5 to 0.8 inches of rain between 1 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Thursday, and it was still raining in those areas a that time.

“We could easily see another quarter to a half inch in those areas,” Keyes said Thursday afternoon.

Pocatello had received 0.78 inches during the same 12-hour period, while Burley didn’t really get anything and Idaho Falls got 0.3 inches. The latter did break a daily record for rainfall on Wednesday, receiving 0.8 inches of rain, slightly higher than the previous record 0.77 set in 1980.

The weather service issued a special weather statement on Thursday afternoon for areas including Pocatello, Blackfoot, American Falls, American Falls Reservoir, Neeley, Goshen, Chubbuck, Shelley, Aberdeen, Inkom, Firth, Rockland, Rose, Fort Hall Bannock Creek Lodge, Pingree, Pocatello Airport, Fort Hall Putnam Lodge, Cold Water Rest Area, Fort Hall Buffalo Lodge and Fort Hall Eagle Lodge. They said moderate to heavy rainfall had fallen from Idaho Falls south to the Utah border and more was on the way.

“Ponding of water is likely in low lying areas, especially those areas that are paved,” according to the special weather statement. “Please do not drive through water. Make sure all drains are clear.”

The recent storms have brought cooler temperatures to the region, but Keyes says that’s not unusual for this time of year. He noted that colder systems often move through the area during this transitional season.

“Similar systems have occurred in later August and early September (that have brought) cooler weather than we’re used to,” Keyes said.

The recent storms have helped improve air quality in some areas of East Idaho.

Pocatello went from a level considered unhealthy for sensitive groups on Wednesday to a moderate level on Thursday, said Clay Woods, Air Shed coordinator for the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality’s southeastern region.

Still, he said smoke from wildfires across the western U.S. will likely continue to affect air quality for the immediate future.

He advises people to minimize their outdoor activity, especially when it comes to exercise and other things that require heavy exertion.

“Stay inside if you can,” Woods said.

People can stay up to date on air quality conditions through the website www.deq.idaho.gov or the Air Idaho app.

Keyes said East Idaho could see more rain in the days ahead, especially on Saturday, but warmer and drier conditions are currently forecast for next week.