Drought Information Statement for the Philadelphia/Mt. Holly Hydrologic Service Area 
Valid February 27, 2025
Issued By: NWS Philadelphia/Mt. Holly
Contact Information: wfophi.webmaster@noaa.gov 
This product will be updated March 31, 2025 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/phi/DroughtInformationStatement for previous statements. 

The state of New Jersey has issued a Drought Warning for the entire state.
The state of Maryland has issued a Drought Warning for the Eastern Shore.
The state of Delaware has issued a Drought Watch for the entire state.
The state of Pennsylvania has issued a Drought Watch for east-central and southeast portions of the state and a Drought Warning for Berks county. 

U.S. Drought Monitor

Drought intensity and Extent

D4 (Exceptional Drought): No Exceptional Drought exists across the Hydrologic Service Area (HSA).
D3 (Extreme Drought): Extreme Drought exists across portions of southern New Jersey.
D2 (Severe Drought): Severe Drought exists across portions of NJ, DE, southeastern PA, and the MD Eastern Shore.
D1 (Moderate Drought): Most of the forecast area is at least in Moderate Drought.
D0: (Abnormally Dry): The entire forecast area is at least considered Abnormally Dry.

Recent Change in Drought Intensity

One Week Drought Monitor Class Change…
 
Drought Worsened: Deterioration was observed across Sussex County, NJ. 
 
No Change: Most of the forecast area remained the same. 

Drought Improved: No improvement was observed.

Precipitation

The majority of the  HSA have experienced below normal precipitation over the last 30 days. Portions of southern NJ and the Delmarva have seen normal or above normal precipitation.

Temperature

When averaged (ending 2/23), the entire region has seen much below normal temperatures over the last 7 days.

Over the last 30 days, temperatures have also been below normal.

Summary of Impacts

Hydrologic Impacts 
  ● Seven-day average streamflow conditions, ending 2/27, are running below normal to much below normal. 

Agricultural Impacts
  ● Soil moisture was running below normal across the HSA. 

Other Impacts
  ● Per state DEPs, reservoir pools across the HSA were either normal or below normal.
  ● Per the Delaware River Basin Commission, and as of February 24th, the salt front in the Delaware River Estuary was estimated at river mile 71.9. The normal location for this time of year is river mile marker 71. This means the salt line was further upstream compared to normal.

Mitigation Actions
  ● Per the state of New Jersey, a Drought Warning has been issued for the entire state.
  ● Per the state of Maryland, a Drought Warning has been issued for the Eastern Shore.
  ● Per the state of Delaware, a Drought Watch has been issued for the entire state.
  ● Per the state of Pennsylvania, a Drought Watch has been issued for the East-Central and Southeast portions of the state. A Drought Warning has been issued for Berks county.
  
Keep in mind, the National Weather Service does not declare Drought Watches or Warnings.

Hydrologic Conditions and Impacts

Seven-day average streamflow conditions are running below normal to much below normal.
 
Agricultural Impacts

Soil moisture was running below normal across the HSA.

Seven Day Precipitation Forecast

A cold front will move through today bringing showers across the region. This will be followed by brief high pressure on Friday. A strong cold front will move through the region later on Saturday. Cold high pressure will build in later Sunday into Monday before moving offshore into Tuesday. An area of low pressure is forecast to approach on Wednesday.

The 8 to 14 day outlook calls for near normal temperatures and above normal precipitation.