A bone-dry October pushed almost half of the United States into a flash drought, leading to fires in the Midwest and hindering shipping on the Mississippi River, according to Associated Press reporting Tuesday. More than 100 different long-term weather stations in 26 states are having their driest October on record, according to records through Sunday from the Southern Regional Climate Center and Midwest Regional Climate Center. Cities that had no measurable rain for October include New York, Houston, Dallas, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Sioux City, Iowa, along with normal dry spots such as Los Angeles, Las Vegas and Phoenix, National Weather Service records show.
"This is on pace for a record dry October," said Allison Santorelli, acting warning coordinator for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Weather Prediction Center in College Park, Maryland. This includes the Southeast, some of which experienced deadly flooding just the month before in Hurricane Helene. People are also reading.
.. A fire is seen Tuesday in the Highlands Lake Subdivision northwest of Divide, Colo.
In June, less than 12% of the country experienced drought. Now it's almost 50% and growing, according to the U.S.
Drought Monitor. That fits the definition of "flash drought," which is different than normal slowly developing dry spells, said U.S.
Department of Agriculture meteorologist Brad Rippey, a drought monitor author. A study last year showed that a warming world from the burning of .
