The most recent U.S. Drought Monitor shows some drought relief following recent rain events. In some areas of the state, such as western Illinois, drought conditions improved from the prior week. Counties such as Henderson, Knox, and Warren went wend from D2 (severe drought) to D1 (moderate drought).
State Climatologist Trent Ford says although we have started to see rain, we have to wait to see the benefits it will bring.
“When we talk about drought improvement, we have to break it up into different parts of the state. Some rain is better than no rain and when we are getting totals over half an inch, that’s actually beneficial. So, we will see some– I don’t want to call it improvement yet. We will have to see how the crop fares but it is a step in the right direction.”
He adds that some areas have seen a steep decline into drought in a matter of six weeks and the recent rain has been able to slow that pattern.
