Dry & Drought Conditions Expand
the first half of 2012 has been dry for much of the region.
The first half of 2012 was dry for most of the Northeast. New York, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and West Virginia were below normal, Maryland and Connecticut were much below normal, and Delaware had its driest record. The Northeast as a whole had 89% of it normal precipitation for the 6-month period. The lack of rain has continued into July, causing abnormally dry and moderate drought conditions to spread across the Northeast. Year-to-date precipitation, through July 18th, is below normal at all of the First Order stations, excluding those in Maine. Thirteen of the 35 stations have had less than 80% of normal precipitation, the driest areas being Wilmington DE, Baltimore MD, and Philadelphia PA. Dry conditions are expected to persist in a band stretching from Lake Erie east through Albany as well as western Pennsylvania. The same holds for Maryland, Delaware, western Massachusetts and parts of Virginia, although conditions in those areas are expected to slightly improve.