California's typically rainy season is lagging behind, leading to a moderate drought in Southern California. The region has not received significant rainfall since May, raising concerns about wildfire risk and water shortages.
California is entering the fourth month of what is typically the rainy season, but in the Southland, the landscape is beginning to show signs of drought. The last time Los Angeles recorded rainfall over a tenth of an inch — the threshold that officials typically consider helpful for thirsty plants and the reduction of wildfire risk — was May 5, when downtown received just 0.13 inches of rain.
“It’s safe to say this is the top ten driest starts to our rainy season on record,' said Ryan Kittell, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Oxnard. 'Basically, all the plants are as dry as they normally are in October.' California's wet season can run from October to April, although most of the precipitation occurs from December to February. Current forecasts show little hope that a needed storm could develop in the next few weeks, and the Southern California landscape — ripe for wildfire and never far from chronic water shortages — is paying the price. Much of the region, including the majority of Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Riverside, Orange and San Diego counties, has fallen into moderate drought conditions, according to a U.S. Drought Monitor map released this week. The last time the Southland saw similarly dry conditions was in early 2023, as the state was exiting a punishing, years-long drought thanks to an exceptional kickoff to the wet season. Prior to the recent drought report, conditions in Southern California were considered to be 'abnormally dry' for the last few weeks. Much of the Central Valley remains in that category. 'Above-normal temperatures and below-normal precipitation resulted in expansion of drought in Arizona, California and Nevada,' the new report said. The latest long-range forecasts show Southern California remaining in a below-average rainfall pattern for the entire month of January, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Climate Prediction Cente
California Drought Rainfall Wildfires Water Shortage
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