The weekly Drought Monitor showed drought getting worse across areas in the Midwest, South, Southwest, and the Pacific Northwest.
In the Midwest, extreme heat impacted areas like Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Wisconsin, and Illinois. Record high temps were set in cities like Chicago (98), Milwaukee (101), and Minneapolis (101). Areas in the South, including the Texas Gulf Coast, Louisiana, and Southern Mississippi, saw continued drought-related deterioration on this week’s map. Temperatures continued to push over 100 degrees during the week, breaking records. Houston reached 109, San Antonio hit 104, Austin was 107, and Dallas topped out at 109.
Some areas on the map did see some improvement, including southern Texas, where heavy rains from Tropical Storm Harold provided much-needed relief to the region. Rainfall accumulation along the southern Gulf Coast and South Texas Plains regions ranged from two to six inches. In the Southeast, areas of Florida were impacted by Hurricane Idalia.
