BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) – The Thursday morning U.S. Drought Monitor update shows that the extreme drought has continued to expand. Around 65% of Vermont is now in an extreme drought, up from 24% last week.
The extreme drought last week covered about 33% of New Hampshire, but it has spread to more than 50% of the state. This is officially the worst drought in New Hampshire since the drought monitor was first published in 2000. This means drought that is this severe and widespread has not been seen in New Hampshire in at least 25 years.
Drought Monitor(WCAX)
It should also be noted that this is also the worst drought in Vermont since the start of the drought monitor. But this has been the worst drought in Vermont since the first week of September. New Hampshire’s drought just became the worst in its history with this update.
NH DSCI(WCAX)
VT DSCI(WCAX)
The drought conditions have become worse in northern New York as well. A small part of Essex County, N.Y. is now in the extreme drought. Just a week ago there were still areas that were unusually dry but not in a drought, but now almost all of northern New York is in a drought.
Drought Comparison(WCAX)
But it is important to note that the rainfall from Tuesday evening into Wednesday morning is NOT included in this update. Due to the way the data is collected and processed, that rainfall will not be included until next week’s update. And while it’s not enough rain to reduce the drought for most areas, it could temporarily pause the spread.
Drought Schedule(WCAX)
And while it’s not enough rain to reduce the drought for most areas, it could temporarily pause the spread. And it does look like there’s another chance for rain on the way for Sunday night into Monday. This is thanks to a coastal low. If we see any rainfall from that, it will also be included in the next drought update.
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