Drought Information Statement for the Middle Ohio River Valley Valid August 8, 2024 Issued By: NWS Wilmington Ohio Contact Information: spotreport.iln@noaa.gov This product will be updated by Sept 8, 2024 or sooner if drought conditions change significantly. Please see all currently available products at https://drought.gov/drought-information-statements. Please visit https://www.weather.gov/ILN/DroughtInformationStatement for previous statements. Please visit https://www.drought.gov/drought-status-updates/ for regional drought status updates. Drought conditions have worsened in portions of the Ohio Valley over the past several weeks, while other areas have seen improvements 1 U.S. Drought Monitor Drought intensity and Extent D2 (Severe Drought): Portions of the lower Scioto Valley D1 (Moderate Drought): Through much of central/southern Ohio and spotty locations near the Ohio River D0: (Abnormally Dry): While Indiana and Southwest Ohio has returned to near normal conditions, much of the mid and upper Ohio valley remained in the Abnormally Dry category Recent Change in Drought Intensity Four Week Drought Monitor Class Change. Drought Worsened: Areas of southern and central Ohio have worsened over the past 4 weeks, as well as portions of northern Kentucky. No Change: Focused areas of recent rainfall has been just enough to keep some conditions status quo across some areas of central/southern Ohio and southeast Indiana Drought Improved: Portions of southwest Ohio and eastern Indiana have received enough recent rainfall to improve conditions since mid July. Precipitation Accumulations and Percent of Normal While precipitation over the past 30 days has trended toward normal to above normal in western Ohio/eastern Indiana, it remains below normal through central/southern Ohio and northern Kentucky. Temperature Both the 30 day and 7 day temperature anomalies depict above normal temperatures across at least portions of the mid Ohio Valley. Summary of Impacts Links: See/submit Condition Monitoring Observer Reports (CMOR) and view the Drought Impacts Reporter Hydrologic Impacts Below normal streamflow has improved slightly in western Ohio/southeast Indiana, but has been persistent in central/southern Ohio. Agricultural Impacts Pastures were drying due to elevated temperatures and lack of precipitation in the southern part of the State, according to Ben Torrance, State Statistician, USDA NASS, Ohio Field Office. Ohio Crop Weather Ohio Crop Weather Report, Indiana Crop Weather Report, Kentucky Crop Weather Report Fire Hazard Impacts There are no known impacts at this time Other Impacts There are no known impacts at this time Mitigation Actions None reported Hydrologic Conditions and Impacts Image Caption: USGS 7 day average streamflow HUC map valid July 17, 2024 Below normal streamflow is affecting portions of middle/lower Scioto, and the Hocking basin of Ohio. Drought Outlook The latest monthly and seasonal outlooks can be found on the CPC homepage The 1-Month drought outlook depicted here was from July 30, 2024. A new outlook will be issued at the end of August. At the time of this issuance, precipitation is expected to be largely below normal for the period of August 8-15. The 8-14 day outlook for the period Aug 15-21 is for above normal temperatures and near normal precipitation. Links to the latest: Climate Prediction Center Monthly Drought Outlook Climate Prediction Center Seasonal Drought Outlook