Heavy rains last week brought relief to parts of the Pacific Northwest, Great Plains, and South, but drought conditions persist across much of the country, according to the latest U.S. Drought Monitor report. The U.S. Drought Monitor is jointly produced by the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the United States Department of Agriculture and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Significant precipitation—over 3 inches in many areas—fell from northern California to the Canadian border, and from Oklahoma southward to central Texas. Some locations in Washington, Oregon, Oklahoma, Texas, Mississippi, and Florida received between 5 and 10 inches. This helped improve drought conditions in the Pacific Northwest, northern Intermountain West, parts of the Great Plains, and the interior Deep South.
Despite these improvements, dryness worsened in parts of the central and northern High Plains, the Texas Panhandle, Deep South, coastal Texas, southern Alabama and Georgia, and small areas in the mid-Atlantic and Northeast. Hawaii also saw deteriorating drought conditions in Upcountry Maui and the southeastern Big Island.
Overall, about 69% of the contiguous U.S. remains affected by dryness or drought (D0 or worse), a slight decline from 72% last week but still well above the 49% average since 2000. Moderate to severe drought (D1 or worse) covers 43.6% of the Lower 48, down slightly from 46.1% but above the 31% average.
Regional highlights show mixed conditions:
- Northeast: Several inches of rain improved areas near Lake Erie and parts of New England, but southern Maine, Upstate New York, and sections of New Jersey and Maryland saw worsening dryness. Streamflows in parts of Pennsylvania and near Washington, D.C., remain near record lows.
- Southeast: Rainfall varied widely, improving central South Carolina and northern Alabama but worsening drought in northern Florida, southeastern Alabama, and southern Georgia. Severe drought (D3) now dominates northern Florida and parts of Alabama and Georgia.
- South: Heavy rains improved much of Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Tennessee, reducing drought coverage from 80.6% to 68.6%. However, dryness persists in southern and coastal Texas and the Texas Panhandle.
- Midwest: Rainfall improved northeastern Ohio and parts of Michigan, but dryness expanded in Iowa and Indiana. Moderate to severe drought increased slightly to 11.6% of the region.
- High Plains: Least affected by drought, with 37.2% experiencing dryness or drought. Colorado and Wyoming have the most drought, mainly in higher elevations.
- West: Conditions remained stable except for improvements in northern California, Oregon, and Washington due to heavy precipitation. Some deterioration occurred in north-central Montana.
In the Pacific and Caribbean, drought conditions remain largely unchanged, with some intensification in parts of Hawaii.
Looking ahead, little precipitation is expected across much of the Lower 48 over the next five days, except for light to moderate rain in parts of New England, the Appalachians, and the Pacific Northwest. Temperatures will be below normal in the Southeast but near or above normal elsewhere, with unusual warmth expected in the northern Great Plains and Rockies.
From November 4 to 8, wetter-than-normal weather is forecast for the Pacific Northwest and northern California, while drier conditions are likely from the Rockies to the Appalachians. Warmer-than-normal temperatures are expected across much of the country, except for New England and adjacent New York, where cooler weather is favored.
