Drought conditions continue to improve across Middle Tennessee
The latest Drought Monitor shows a remarkable turnaround compared to late April, with severe and extreme drought conditions largely erased across much of the Midstate.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - How drought affects an area involves much more than just the numbers. Too much rain too quickly, or too little rain for too long, can both have major impacts across Middle Tennessee.
While the numbers don’t tell the whole story, they do tell an important part of it. And for Middle Tennessee, those numbers are trending in a very encouraging direction.
Big improvements have been noted over the last three months.
Back in late April, nearly all of Middle Tennessee was experiencing severe to extreme drought conditions. Some areas west of Nashville, including parts of Humphreys, Hickman, and Perry counties, were even classified in extreme drought.
Fast forward to today, and the picture looks dramatically different.
Much of Middle Tennessee has been removed from drought altogether, with many counties now classified as either “abnormally dry” or completely drought-free. Moderate drought remains in portions of the Cumberland Plateau and eastern sections of the Midstate, but the widespread severe drought conditions from earlier this spring have largely disappeared.
The improvement comes after several rounds of soaking rainfall that have helped replenish soil moisture, improve stream flows and raise reservoir levels across the region.
Additional opportunities for scattered showers and storms remain in the forecast over the coming days, which should help continue the slow march toward full drought recovery.
