West Virginia Drought Status

Drought Expands in West Virginia; Record-Setting Dryness in the Northeast
Exceptional and extreme drought persisted in West Virginia this week, continuing to cover 38% of the state. This is the 16th consecutive week with extreme (D3) or worse drought conditions in the state, extending the state’s record-long such stretch. Severe and moderate drought expanded slightly this week, with drought conditions encompassing 90% of the state, up 2% from last week. Abnormal dryness also persisted, covering the remaining 10% of the state. Precipitation deficits since the start of summer, June 1, range from 4.66 inches below normal in Beckley to 9.17 inches below normal in Charleston. This October 1-30 period ranked as the second-driest such period on record for Beckley, Charleston, and Huntington, with the sites each seeing 0.27 inches or less of precipitation. If these sites do not receive measurable precipitation on October 31, this October will become one of the six all-time driest months ever observed at these sites since their records began in the late 1890s. This exceptional dryness extends to other parts of the Northeast. For instance, sites like Philadelphia, PA, and Newark, NJ, have not seen measurable precipitation this month, are on track to have their all-time driest month on record, and have set records for longest streak of days without measurable precipitation. The NRCC’s full weekly drought update for the entire Northeast can be found here.

Topsoil moisture declined in West Virginia this week, with USDA data showing 89% of West Virginia having topsoil moisture in the very short-short categories for the week ending October 27 compared to 77% last week. The condition of corn, hay, pastures, and soybeans in West Virginia also declined compared to last week, with all remaining in the very poor, poor, and fair categories, with none of these crops in the good or excellent categories for the week ending October 20 – similar to the past few weeks. Pasture and rangeland conditions worsened slightly in West Virginia, being in the poor or very poor categories for 96% of the state compared to last week’s 92%. Streamflow and groundwater levels were below normal or lower in several locations. The extremely dry conditions have increased the risk of wildfires.

Two cold fronts moving through over the next week could provide some precipitation to the Mountain State. Otherwise, high pressure is expected to be the main weather influencer, keeping conditions dry. The seven-day precipitation forecast from NOAA’s Weather Prediction Center shows 0.50” of precipitation or less for the state. The 6-10-day outlook (November 5-9) from NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center favors near-or above-normal precipitation, along with above-normal temperatures. This could chip away at drought conditions if enough precipitation falls. However, for the 8-14-day period (November 7-13), near-normal precipitation and above-normal temperatures are predicted, which may limit drought relief. For winter, La Niña conditions are expected to emerge, which tends to increase storminess and lead to above-normal precipitation for the Ohio Valley, possibly helping ease drought conditions. The NRCC’s full weekly drought update can be found here and drought impacts can be reported here and viewed here.

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