Drought

Washington County commissioners have asked residents to conserve water and to fast and pray for rain to ease the severe drought. Since the start of the water year on Oct. 1, Washington County has received .34 inches of rain, making this the third driest water year on record thus far. The Salt Lake Tribune (Utah), Jan 29, 2025

Dubuque, Winneshiek and Hardin counties have enacted burn bans due to the uptick in grass, brush and field fires over the past two weeks. The Independence Fire Department has experienced a historic number of field fires, having had eight this year, compared to none at this time last year. Across the county, they have dealt with more than a dozen field fires. KCRG (Cedar Rapids, Iowa), Jan 30, 2025

Fire officials urge the public to exercise extreme caution with any open burning or controlled burns. The Bremer County Sheriff’s Office and Bremer County Emergency Management Agency reported a total of seven controlled burns getting out of control on Wednesday, January 29, with six of the blazes occurring within about an hour. Firefighters with Marble Rock Fire Department and the Rockford Fire Department agreed that open burning was unwise. The Cresco Fire Department also responded to at least five grass fires that stemmed from controlled burns. KCHA 95.9 FM (Charles City, Iowa), Jan 30, 2025

A mandatory water conservation notice that took effect on November 18 remained for those served by the Roaring Creek Water Plant, including the towns of Ralpho Township, Zerbe Township, Coal Township and Mount Carmel Township in Northumberland County; Conyngham Township and Centralia Borough in Columbia County; and Butler Township, Gordon Borough and Girardville Borough in Schuylkill County. The News-Item (Shamokin, Pa.), Jan 28, 2025

A farmer near Casa Grande doesn’t have enough water to irrigate all of her crops. 12 News (Phoenix, Ariz.), Jan 21, 2025

Ice on the Missouri River at Omaha, combined with low water levels, due to drought, were jamming some units at Omaha Public Power District’s North Omaha Power Station. Such interesting ice jams have not occurred since 1989. KETV Newswatch 7 (Omaha, Neb.), Jan 24, 2025

The Maryland Department of Environment issued drought warnings and watches across the state and encouraged water conservation. Drought warnings were enacted for the Eastern and Southern areas, while drought watches were issued for Central and Western Maryland. The Baltimore area was in normal condition. WMAR-TV ABC 2 (Baltimore, Md.), Nov 18, 2024

Palmetto State Park in Central Texas was on the dry side after a dry spell from summer to fall. The swamp was dried up rather than roughly three feet deep, and the grass was dead. The last good rain fell about two to three months ago. The dry conditions threaten the ability of the green tree frogs to reproduce because they have nowhere to lay their eggs. Some of the smaller trees like hackberries and cedar elms were dying. KEYE CBS Austin (Texas), Jan 13, 2025

The Corpus Christi city council gave the city manager approval to proceed with brokering contracts with landowners for lease sites for wells. The council’s vote set aside about $2 million for contracts that would support the first year of groundwater pumping from the wells. The wells were among several water supply projects the city has been exploring as Stage 3 water restrictions continued. Lake Corpus Christi and Choke Canyon were at 19.1% of capacity on Jan 13. Corpus Christi Caller Times (Texas), Jan 14, 2025

Rainbow trout were not stocked in the southernmost counties of Texas because water temperatures were too high due to drought. The Katy News (Katy, Texas), Jan 14, 2025

A prolonged lack of rain, an extremely dry winter, and Santa Ana winds combined to unleash wildfires in the Los Angeles area. The conflagrations affected parts of the Hollywood Hills, Pasadena, Altadena, Sylmar, and other areas. At least 10 deaths have been reported, and more than 9,000 structures were destroyed. NBC (New York), Jan 10, 2025

The lack of rain in Arizona was causing problems for ranchers and growers who needed rain. An Arizona rancher was forced to spend money on hay for his cattle because it was so dry, and grass was not growing. He anticipated having to sell more than half of his herd if drought continued in 2025. A wine grape grower near Sedona irrigated his vines in January, something that he has never done before this. AZFamily (Phoenix, Ariz.), Jan 6, 2025

The Central, Northeast, and Connecticut River Valley regions in Massachusetts were downgraded from a Level-3 Critical Drought to a Level-2 Significant Drought. The Western and Southeast Regions were also changed from a Level-3 Critical Drought to a Level-1 Mild Drought status due to improved conditions. The Cape and Islands regions remained in a Level-1 Mild Drought. Mass.gov Energy and Environmental Affairs (Boston, Ma.), Jan 8, 2025

Ongoing drought was affecting fish and wildlife in the Delaware River Basin. The brown trout that spawn in the autumn from September into October can be more vulnerable to drying out, ice and predators when the water is low. NJ Spotlight (Montclair, N.J.), Jan 6, 2025

New York’s statewide drought watch was lifted on January 3, returning all 62 counties to normal status. The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation issued a drought watch on November 18 due to below normal rainfall. Fifteen counties were in a drought warning for a time. WTEN ABC News 10 (Albany, N.Y.), Jan 3, 2025 A drought watch was declared on Nov. 18 for much of New York with 15 counties placed in a drought warning. The counties in a drought warning were New York City, including Bronx, Kings, New York, Queens, and Rockland counties, and other counties in the Hudson Valley, such as Delaware, Dutchess, Greene, Orange, Putnam, Richmond, Schoharie, Sullivan, Ulster and Westchester counties. WTEN News10 ABC (Albany, N.Y.), Nov 19, 2024

New York City lifted its drought watch on January 3. Spectrum News 1 (New York City), Jan 3, 2025 New York City returned to a drought watch from a drought warning as of Monday, December 16 as recent storms eased the drought situation. Some of the water-saving measures that the city took while in a drought warning were suspending street flushing by the Sanitation Department, limiting water use in park fountains, and less washing of New York City vehicles. The drought warning was triggered when reservoir levels fell to 60% of capacity. CBS News New York, Dec 16, 2024 Mayor Eric Adams announced that New York City’s drought watch had become a drought warning and included another ten counties, covering much of the Hudson Valley. Governor Kathy Hochul declared a drought watch for the rest of the state. NYC’s reservoirs were at about 60% of their normal capacity, although they would normally be closer to 79% full at this time of year. The public was urged to conserve water voluntarily. The repair of the Delaware Aqueduct has been postponed as it requires the closure of a tunnel that typically carries about half of the city’s water supply. When repairs began in early October, the city was cut off from four major reservoirs in the Catskill Mountains. The New York Times, Nov 18, 2024

Restrooms at Enchanted Rock State Natural Area were closed on Jan. 1, 2025, due to water scarcity in Central Texas. The park's wells could not keep up with water demand, which was about 7,000 gallons daily. The wells were only producing about 4,000 gallons of water per day. The Hill Country Underground Water Conservation District, which manages groundwater in Gillespie County, is currently in "critical" drought conditions. San Antonio Express-News (Texas), Jan 2, 2025

The Susquehanna River was very low, as were smaller creeks and streams. Well levels were dropping. WGAL-TV (Lancaster, Pa.), Dec 19, 2024

The absence of rain in the Susquehanna River Valley was hurting winter crops. WGAL-TV (Lancaster, Pa.), Dec 19, 2024

Restoration efforts at Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge were ahead of schedule. The thinning project to lower pine density has proceeded more quickly than expected due to the drought. About three-fourths of the 100-acre plot of loblolly pines has been cleared. The goal is to allow some of the hardwood species like the oaks to establish themselves and grow. WBOC-TV CBS 16 Salisbury (Md.), Dec 19, 2024