Drought Conditions Go From Bad to Worse

There's no secret that we have been in a drought for quite some time, dating back to last fall when we entered into a La Nina type weather pattern.

A La Nina weather set-up usually means we see warmer and drier conditions than normal. That has indeed been the case now for the past 6-8 months.

About two months ago, many of our communities in Deep East Texas were in a moderate to severe drought.

Last month, several areas were upgraded to an extreme drought, which is a stage 3 drought. Keep in mind, a stage 4, or exceptional drought, is the worst drought possible.

Due to our lack of rainfall and persistent dry conditions, all of East Texas is now in a stage 3 extreme drought. As you can see from the image above, that extreme drought stretches all the way to the Arklatex and as far south as Conroe and Silsbee in Southeast Texas.

We are not the only one's seeing the parched soils. In fact, most of the Lone Star State is in a drought of some kind.

The image to your left shows that 65% of the state is experiencing a severe or extreme drought at the present time. Over 85% of the state is in a drought, period. The only exceptions are a small section of the panhandle and a small area along the lower Texas coastline.

An extreme drought is about a 1 in 30 year drought. It is usually an indication that water shortages will be enacted soon, and crops and pasture losses are likely.

The long term climate models suggest we may not see things improve anytime soon. The climate models indicate that the warmer and drier conditions will prevail for the next few months.