The drought monitor was updated with the start of February, and more than 97% of Virginia is abnormally dry, and almost half of the commonwealth is in a moderate drought. Most of our area is still in a moderate drought, and some parts of the state are even in a severe drought. We received just over half of the rainfall we normally receive in the month of January, and after starting the year with drought conditions carried over from 2017, we could be facing a serious drought this spring and summer. John Miller, with the Virginia Department of Forestry, said a drought like this is unusual in Virginia, especially because we normally recharge our ground water in the…

INDIAHOMA, OK (KSWO) – Most of southwest Oklahoma is now under severe or extreme drought conditions. Because of the dry conditions, officials at the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge are urging everyone to be extra cautious when spending time out on the refuge. Assistant Fire Management Officer Jeremiah Phillips said the longer the drought goes on, the higher the fire danger is on the refuge. “Right now our fire danger is very high, not to the extreme level yet, but we are trending in that direction. Until we see a significant change in the weather pattern, we’re just going to continue to get worse and worse,” Phillips said. Because of that danger, there are a few new restrictions in place for those visiting the refuge. “We’ve restricted activities such that open burning and campfires are no longer allowed and we’ll keep those in place for the…

FARMINGTON — Drought conditions in San Juan County have worsened over the course of 2018, and short-term forecasts are not predicting any relief from the situation. Different drought indexes place the county in either moderate or severe drought. According to the Palmer index, which Farmington uses to monitor drought, the area is in a moderate drought. According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, the county is in a severe drought, and those conditions have become worse over the course of what has been an unseasonably dry and warm winter. While the drought conditions have worsened since the start of the year, officials say it is still too early to tell what that may mean for water and fire conditions for the rest of the year. Farmington Public Works director David Sypher said he is planning to give a presentation to the City Council during its 9 a.m. Feb. 20 work session about the city’s ordinances regarding drought. Sypher said the city has done what it can to prepare to meet demand if no significant moisture comes to the area in the upcoming months. “We’re hopeful that we’ll get a turnaround in the next month or two,” he said. Sypher said Farmington Lake, which stores the drinking water for the city of Farmington, is full, and the stream flow in the Animas River is good. (Photo: The Daily Times file…

After Sunday’s soaking rain, drought conditions took a big hit during Thursday’s United States Drought Monitor update. The entire area of the northern Midlands covered by the second stage of drought known as moderate drought have been downgraded to the first stage known as abnormally dry. Just last week, drought expanded and encroached on every portion of the Midlands. Some areas in the southern Midlands were not included prior to last Thursday’s update. In the latest USDM outlook, those areas still remain in the first stage of drought. Looking at last Sunday’s precipitation, some areas recorded nearly two and a half inches of rainfall. The National Weather Service observed 2.42 inches in Saluda County’s Ridge Spring area while Newberry County’s Prosperity saw 2.40 inches. Irmo, Elgin, Manning and Blythewood recorded more than two inches of rain. “Sunday’s storm system really dropped some impressive numbers in areas that desperately needed the rain,” says SkyWACH…