Conditions have been dry since early September for Lyon County residents, and that trend is likely to continue at least short-term if not through much of the upcoming winter. According to National Weather Service meteorologist Chad Omitt, La Nina — or the cooler-than-normal surface water temperatures in the central Pacific Ocean — is one of the reasons why.
Recent studies of seven La Nina events over the past 20 years indicate drier than normal winter conditions in all but one case, which could be an issue for an extended period of time. Climate.gov says there is a 95 percent chance the current La Nina could last through the winter, with a 65 percent chance it could actually last through spring 2021.
For Lyon County, the tap started turning off in late July after we had a nearly 5-inch rainfall at the KVOE studios. Since then, we have received just over eight inches of rainfall. The total so far is 35.35 inches at the KVOE studios, well below the nearly 60 inches of rainfall we had at the studios last year.
Moderate drought now covers the vast majority of the KVOE listening area, with central Greenwood County the only area location listed as abnormally dry by the US Drought Monitor.
