Drought Disaster Declared for 22 Counties in 2 States

Texas and Florida counties declared drought disaster areas

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated 22 counties in Texas and Florida as primary or contiguous disaster areas due to damages and losses caused by the ongoing drought.

The designated drought disaster areas in Texas are

• PDA: Calhoun and Jackson counties.
• CDA: Aransas,Colorado, Lavaca, Matagorda, Refugio, Victoria and Wharton counties.

The designated drought disaster areas in Florida are

• PDA: Alachua, Flagler, Putnam and St. Johns counties.
• CDA: Bradford, Clay, Columbia, Duval, Gilchrist, Levy, Marion, Union and Volusia counties.

US Drought Map as of April 16, 2013, released by US Drought Monitor on April 18, 2013.

FIRE-EARTH Drought Links 2013

• U-S Drought 2013: Fueled by Heat from Hell? January 31, 2013 [FIRE-EARTH Forecast]
• Drought Disaster Declared in 32 Additional Texas Counties April 4, 2013
• US: Drought Disaster 2013 [Index Page]

Drought Intensifies Throughout USA

More than 60% of the lower 48 states and Hawaii in “abnormally dry” or drought conditions

Wildfires as far north as upstate New York and multiple outbreaks of brushfires along the Atlantic Coast from New England to Florida are occurring due to unusually dry weather and winds.

List of states that are in 100% “abnormally dry” or drought conditions

• Arizona
• Connecticut
• Delaware
• District of Columbia
• Florida
• Maine
• Massachusetts
• New Hampshire
• New Jersey
• New Mexico
• Rhode Island
• South Carolina
• Vermont

More than 99.96% of Florida  is currently in drought, with nearly a third of the state experiencing the worst two categories of drought, Extreme (D3), and Exceptional (D4).

List of states that are in more than 94% “abnormally dry” or drought conditions

• California (95.11%)
• Colorado (94.83%)
• Georgia (95.48%)
• Maryland (98.05%)
• Minnesota (99.88%)
• Nevada (99.87%)
• Utah (99.01%)

More than 84% of Georgia is currently in drought, with nearly two-thirds of the state experiencing D3 and D4 drought levels.

The following excerpts are from the U.S. Drought Monitor (Report released on April 12, 2012)

• The Northeast and Mid-Atlantic
  • The U.S. Drought Monitor report:  During the past 60-days, 25 to 50 percent of normal precipitation has fallen from northern Virginia northward into coastal Maine, with deficits between 4 and 8 inches. Similar percentages and deficiencies also existed at 90-days in the same areas. Since the start of the year, deficits have included: 7.63 inches at Islip, NY; 7.39 inches at Providence, RI; 7.18 inches at Boston, MA; 5.71 inches at Salisbury, MD; and 4.90 inches at Hartford, CT.  The early green-up of trees and vegetation was slowed by the colder air, but yet many plants have begun to grow, taking moisture out of the soils. According to the USGS, stream flow levels were at near- or record lows for April 10 at 1-, 7-, 14-, and 28-day averages in much of New England and the mid-Atlantic. Additionally, there have been several outbreaks of brushfires and some large wild fires, even as far north as upstate New York.

• Southeast:
  • Augusta, Georgia.  The driest rolling 365-day period ending on April 4 beat the former record by 5 inches, while this 365-day period was the 4th driest such period ever (since 1872).
  • Florida. In Florida, the continued lack of rain produced additional deterioration across the state. The first 100 days at Jacksonville, FL, have been the driest since 1921, and only 30 percent of normal.
  • Lake Okeechobee was below 12 feet this morning (11.97 feet, or 2.1 feet below normal), and now falling at 0.2 to 0.3 feet per week. Numerous wild fires have occurred throughout the state as the fire index is now over 700 in south-central Florida.

• Midwest.
  • Little or no precipitation fell over the drought areas of the upper Midwest and adjacent northern Plains. Although temperature anomalies decreased from previous weeks, readings still averaged 6 to 12 ºF above normal.
  • According to the USDA, percent topsoil and subsoil moisture rated very short or short was: Illinois (46/47), Minnesota (60/68), and Iowa (78/85).
  • Canton Lake in Fulton County, IL, was 5 feet below full pool.

• The Plains:
  • A scattering of moderate (0.5 to 1.5 inches) to heavy (1.5 to 4 inches) rains fell on parts of Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, eastern Colorado, and southern Nebraska, but from central Nebraska into the Dakotas, little or no rain was measured.
  • In the northern Plains, however, another dry and mild week further depleted soil moisture as accumulated short-term deficiencies slowly increased. Based upon the 60-, 90-, and 120-day anomalies, D0 expanded in central South Dakota while D1 spread into north-central and southwestern South Dakota and western Nebraska.

• The West:
  • Light to moderate precipitation (0.5 to 2 inches) was confined from northern California and the northern Sierra Nevada northward into the Pacific Northwest and northern Rockies. Little or no precipitation fell on central and southern California, the Great Basin, and the Southwest. Temperatures averaged below normal in western areas, slightly above normal in far eastern sections.

• Hawaii:
  • In Hawaii, some windward locations on Maui and the Big Island received 2 to 4 inches of rain, but much less fell on leeward sides. Fortunately, most of the islands (except the Big Island) received surplus March rainfall, easing any further deterioration there. On the Big Island, however, many northern and leeward locations have reported less than 25 percent of normal rainfall since January 1. Kona coffee growers indicated that leaves are starting to shrivel on their trees and berries are starting to fall.
  • Author: David Miskus, Climate Prediction Center/NCEP/NWS/NOAA

Recent Global Drought Links

• Drought Index Page
• Extreme or Severe Drought Covers 3/4 of Portugal Posted on March 4, 2012
• Hundreds Evacuated Amid Spain Wildfires
• Hunger Plagues Indigenous Community in N Mexico Posted on January 21, 2012
• Mexico declares disaster in drought-stricken areas Posted on January 9, 2012
• Drought 2012 Posted on January 8, 2012
• Drought Declared in Southeast UK Posted on February 21, 2012
• Food production drops 40 percent in Mexico due to drought Posted on March 11, 2012

Global Disasters: Links, Forecasts and Background

• The First Wave of World’s Collapsing Cities
• Back to the Primordial Future
• Mass Die-offs

• 2010 Disasters [Links to 2010 Disaster Calendar]
• Mega Disasters
• 2011 Disaster Calendar
• 2012 Disaster Calendar: Collapse has already Begun

Drought 2012

Half of the U.S. remains abnormally dry or in drought condition

More drought and above-average temperatures forecast for the Southern U.S. in 2012: NWS

U.S. Seasonal Drought Outlook: Drought Tendency During January 5, 2012 – March 31, 2012

Weekly US Drought Map. Source: US Drought Monitor.

Disaster Calendar 2012 – January 8

[January 8, 2012]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,529 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• United States.   Nearly 50 percent of Contiguous US remains abnormally dry or in drought condition.
  • Texas.  The Lone Star State experienced its driest year on record in 2011.
    • The state also had its second warmest year with the average temp of 67.2 degrees (19.6ºC).
    • As many as 500 million trees “with a diameter of 5 inches or larger” across the state of Texas have died as a result of unrelenting drought and record-setting temperatures that plagued the Lone Star state, Texas Forest Service reported.
    • The 12-month period between November 1, 2010 and October 31, 2011 was the driest in Texas history, said the State Climatologist.
    • Also, the months of June, July and August in Texas were the hottest three-month period ever recorded anywhere in America.
    • “In 2011, Texas experienced an exceptional drought, prolonged high winds and record-setting temperatures. Together, those conditions took a severe toll on trees across the state,” said Burl Carraway, Sustainable Forestry department head. “Large numbers of trees in both urban communities and rural forests have died or are struggling to survive. The impacts are numerous and widespread.”
    • The state’s worst ever drought has also led to the largest-ever one-year decline in its cow herd, reports said.
    • The number of cows in Texas has declined by at least 600,000, a 12 percent drop from the 5 million cows in the state at the beginning of the year, said David Anderson of  the Texas AgriLife Extension Service.

Texas Drought Map. Source: US Drought Monitor.

• New Mexico. Some 91.37 percent of New Mexico is currently abnormally dry (D0) or in drought condition (D1 to D4), with 72.13 percent of the state experiencing ‘severe,’ ‘extreme’ or ‘exceptional’ levels of drought.
• Louisiana.
  • D0 to D4: 94.43%
  • D1 to D4: 83.40%
  • D2 to D4: 58.92%
  • D3 to D4: 26.55%
  • D4: 4.10%
• Georgia. 87.93 percent of Georgia is currently abnormally dry or in drought condition, with 81.00 percent of the state experiencing severe or extreme levels of drought.
• Oklahoma. 85.17 percent of Oklahoma is currently abnormally dry or in drought condition, with 50.55 percent of the state experiencing severe (D2) to exceptional (D4) levels of drought.
• South Carolina.
  • D0 to D4: 97.63%
  • D1 to D4: 85.50%
  • D2 to D4: 41.61%
  • D3: 23.30%

• Kansas. 57.52 percent of Kansas is currently abnormally dry or in drought condition, with 23.20 percent of the state experiencing severe to exceptional levels of drought.
• Arizona. 83.30 percent of Arizona is currently abnormally dry or in drought condition, with 36.56 percent of the state experiencing severe to extreme levels of drought.
• Florida.
  • D0 to D4: 91.09%
  • D1 to D4: 27.41%
  • D2 to D4: 12.84%
  • D3: 2.61%

• Alabama. 60.68 percent of Alabama is currently abnormally dry or in drought condition, with 27.97 percent of the state experiencing severe to extreme levels of drought.

• Minnesota. 99.21 percent of Minnesota is currently abnormally dry or in drought condition, with 24.08 percent of the state experiencing severe drought.
• Hawaii.
  • D0 to D4: 56.45%
  • D1 to D4: 47.37%
  • D2 to D4: 28.72%
  • D3: 1.66%

• North Dakota.  99.62 percent of North Dakota is currently abnormally dry or in drought condition, with 8.67 percent of the state experiencing moderate (D1) drought.
• California.
  • D0 to D4: 70.09%
  • D1: 46.34%

• Iowa. 39.01 percent of Iowa is currently abnormally dry or in drought condition, with 24.15 percent of the state experiencing severe drought.

Global Disasters: Links, Forecasts and Background

• Texas drought kills 500 million trees
• Drought Destroys Fifth of Argentine Corn Crop

• The First Wave of World’s Collapsing Cities
• Back to the Primordial Future
• Mass Die-offs

• 2010 Disasters [Links to 2010 Disaster Calendar]
• Mega Disasters: 2011 SIX TIMES MORE DISASTROUS THAN 2010
• 2011 Disaster Calendar