Latest drought report shows less than 30% of Minnesota in dry conditions
Current dry or drought conditions in Minnesota as of May 18, 2023. Credit: U.S. Drought Monitor
The latest report from the U.S. Drought Monitor shows less than 30% of Minnesota is now under a moderate drought or abnormally dry conditions.
According to the report, 26.75% of land is considered to be abnormally dry, while 0.27% is under a moderate drought. That percentage includes the southeastern corner of Rock County and the southwestern corner of Nobles County.
In comparison, at this time last year the agency says 2.93% of land was listed as having abnormally dry conditions, while no land was in any kind of drought.
While the majority of the drought is over in Minnesota, Chief Meteorologist Ken Barlow says the state was in a similar situation last year, but then extreme drought conditions began during the summer months.
As 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS reported last week, the drought report said 36% of the state was experiencing abnormally dry conditions, while 2.7% of the state had moderate drought conditions.
The Drought Monitor says heavy rain fell across southern Minnesota last week that reached anywhere from 4-8″ of total precipitation, helping areas that were previously in a moderate drought.
In Wisconsin, there are no abnormally dry or drought conditions across the entire state as of Thursday’s report.
Images of the United States at this time last year, as well as the current report, can be found below.
The current seven-day forecast shows little to no rain in the Twin Cities area in the near future. CLICK HERE for an interactive radar and HERE for the latest forecast.