ROANOKE, Va. – The Drought Monitor is updated every Thursday morning. To no surprise, half the area is officially in what’s called a “Moderate Drought.” This includes the Roanoke Valley, Lynchburg area and Southside. Parts of the New River Valley and Highlands are considered “Abnormally Dry,” which is essentially a Drought Watch.
So far this year, we’ve run into quite a rainfall deficit. This is a complete opposite from this time last year when areas like Roanoke were 10″ above normal.
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This was exacerbated during the spring, which was the driest in about 15 years. For Danville, it was the 4th-driest spring on record.
While there’s the potential for a few strong-to-severe thunderstorms late Thursday, the hope is that we can get some beneficial rain out of this too. After Thursday, the pattern turns drier with high pressure over the Eastern U.S. Any shower or storm chances will be very hit-or-miss through at least the first half of next week.
For updates on the forecast and the weekly drought monitor, be sure to check in with us on our app.