Just in: Severe drought escalates in Florida.
An unusually parched dry season has expanded areas of severe drought in Florida, according to a U.S. Drought Monitor report released this morning.
About 60 percent of Palm Beach County is listed in “moderate drought” with the remainder considered extremely dry.
Related: Some severe thunderstorms today, but don’t expect much rain But areas west, north and south of Lake Okeechobee are faring worse, falling into the “severe drought” category.
Statewide, 13 percent of Florida is in severe drought, 30 percent is in moderate drought and 25 percent is considered abnormally dry.
Coastal areas of Palm Beach County are down 8.4 inches of rain for the season that began in November.
The Treasure Coast has a deficit of 8.3 inches of rain, according to the South Florida Water Management District.
Check The Palm Beach Post radar map.
In the 16 county region covered by the district, the average rainfall is down by 6.3 inches for the season.
The National Weather Service has put all of South Florida under a fire watch on Friday as low humidity and gusty winds follow a cold front moving through today.