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Recent rainfall and monsoons helped with drought conditions in Phoenix: NWS
The National Weather Service says the rainfall from the monsoon and from our current winter storm have helped drought conditions in central Arizona tremendously. FOX 10's Bailey Miller reports.
PHOENIX - The rain and moisture Arizona has seen this year, and the current storm system, are having a big impact on our drought conditions in a good way.
The National Weather Service in Phoenix says the conditions have improved in a big way over the last year. While there is some catching up to do, overall in the Phoenix-metro area, we are right on track.
"For where we are right now, we are not doing too bad considering the precipitation this month being well above normal, I would feel ok about that," said Derek Hodges, a meteorologist for NWS Phoenix.
The drought is getting better for the Phoenix-metro area as seen in these two maps. The map on the left is from 2020 and the map on the right is from 2021.
The dramatic improvement is all thanks to rainfall, especially from the big storms this monsoon season and the moisture Phoenix has received in December.
"This is a La Nina year, and so those are always below normal rainfall years down here. So for December, during La Niña, there hasn't been this much rain since '84. So it is pretty fortunate to have what we have had," Hodges said.
Overall in the Phoenix-metro area, NWS says we're on the right path, but when it comes to the northern areas of the state, there are still levels of severe and extreme drought. This is a problem because the water supply comes from the Colorado River.
"It is still a serious situation as long as the reduction water continues there will continue to be a need for the rains."
In Phoenix, NWS would still like to see more rainfall, especially in the coming months to keep us on this track because we still have some catching up to do.
More weather news
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- Gov. Newsom declares state of emergency to help California counties hit by winter storms
Tune in to FOX 10 Phoenix for the latest news:
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