Drought Information Statement for Eastern Ohio, Northern West Virginia and Western Pennsylvania Valid November 7, 2024 Issued By: NWS Pittsburgh, PA This product will be updated no later than November 21, 2024 Please see all currently available products at https://drought.gov/drought-information-statements. Please visit https://www.weather.gov/pbz/DroughtInformationStatement for previous statements. Extreme Drought was expanded into SW Pennsylvania. PA DEP Issues Drought watch for several counties in western PA. Exceptional drought remains across portions of Muskingum, Guernsey, Noble, Harrison, Belmont and Monroe counties in OH. U.S. Drought Monitor Drought intensity and Extent D4 (Exceptional Drought): Portions of Muskingum, Noble, Guernsey, Jefferson, Harrison, Belmont, and Monroe counties in OH. D3 (Extreme Drought): Tuscarawas, Carroll, Jefferson, Muskingum, Harrison, Guernsey, Belmont, and Monroe OH; the northern WV panhandle, Marion, Monongalia, Preston, and Tucker counties in WV, Washington, Greene, portions of Westmoreland and Fayette counties in PA. D2 (Severe Drought): Coshocton, Tuscarawas Jefferson, Carroll, Jefferson, Columbiana, and Muskingum OH; Hancock, Brooke, Preston, and eastern Tucker WV; and portions of Washington, Fayette, Westmoreland, and Allegheny counties in PA. D1 (Moderate Drought): Beaver, Allegheny, Westmoreland, Lawrence, Armstrong, and Indiana in PA. D0: (Abnormally Dry): Much of the rest of the region except for portions of the counties along the I-80. Recent Change in Drought Intensity Two Week Drought Monitor Class Change. Drought Worsened: northern Tuscarawas, Carroll, Jefferson and Columbiana counties in Ohio, portions of the northern panhandle in WV, and several counties in SW Pennsylvania, with a 2 class degradation across Washington, Green, Fayette, and western Westmoreland. No Change: much of eastern OH, the northern panhandle of WV, west-central PA. Drought Improved: None Precipitation Light precipitation over the last week. It has been exceptionally dry over the last 30 days, with most areas in the upper Ohio Valley seeing less than 2 inches of rain. Outside of a small area in northwestern PA, rainfall was under 50% of normal, with most of the D4 region seeing less than 25% of normal precipitation. Temperature Temperatures were well above normal over both the last 7 day and over the last month. Summary of Impacts Hydrologic Impacts Streamflows are well below normal with some sites near record low values for the time of year. Some private wells are low or completely dry in OH and WV. Agricultural Impacts Soil moisture ranges from 1-5% over much of eastern Ohio and northern West Virginia. Farmers are hauling water for livestock and supplemental feeding. There have been sales of livestock as a result of lack of feed and water. Fire Hazard Impacts Above normal risk for wildfires through the month of November. Increase in fire activity already noted by OH, WV, and PA. Mitigation Actions Some voluntary and mandatory water restrictions have been put in place. A Drought Watch has been issued by the PA DEP for several counties. Burn bans in place in municipalities in PA and state of WV. Hydrologic Conditions and Impacts Streamflows are running well below normal across the Youghiogheny, Cheat, upper Ohio and the Muskingum River basins and below normal across the rest of the region over the last 7 days due to lack of precipitation. Groundwater wells remain below normal in PA and northern WV. Reservoirs continue to fall to winter pool, but in some cases are below those thresholds. Image Caption: USGS 7 day average streamflow HUC map valid 11/6/2024 Agricultural Impacts Soil moisture remains below normal across much of the upper Ohio Valley. Supplemental feeding of livestock Reports of livestock being sold due to lack of feed/water Fire Hazard Impacts Above normal risk for wildfires through the month of November due to dry conditions, leaf litter. Several burn bans in place across the region including the state of WV (State), state parks in PA (DCNR), and several municipalities. Link to Wildfire Potential Outlooks from the National Interagency Coordination Center. Seven Day Precipitation Forecast Approaching low pressure will drag a cold front across the region into the beginning of next week. This will bring some rain to the entire region. Model probabilities of greater than 0.75 inches are highest in southeastern Ohio and portions of WV at this time. This should help with some streamflow recovery but more precipitation is needed to curb the drought. Long-Range Outlooks The latest monthly and seasonal outlooks can be found on the CPC homepage Latest 6-10 day outlook calls for temperatures well above normal and near average precipitation for the Upper Ohio Valley. Long-Range Outlooks The latest monthly and seasonal outlooks can be found on the CPC homepage 8-14 day also highlights above normal temperature and near normal precipitation. Long-Range Outlooks The latest monthly and seasonal outlooks can be found on the CPC homepage The weeks 3-4 outlook suggests the potential for above normal temperatures to persist with equal chances of above/below normal. Drought Outlook The latest monthly and seasonal outlooks can be found on the CPC homepage The newest seasonal drought outlook suggests that there could be some slight improvement to drought conditions in the next three months. However, it will take more than normal rainfall for much of Ohio and West Virginia to recover. Climate Prediction Center Monthly Drought Outlook Climate Prediction Center Seasonal Drought Outlook