Drought Watch Still In Effect – No Joke

What? You say your basement is still flooded? Ignore that. A drought watch is still in effect.

Update: Joke's Over and So Is the Drought

Yes, we still have flooding in parts of the region in the aftermath of Hurricane Irene, but an official drought watch is still in effect.

This, with the wettest August in Philadelphia’s history. Crazy, right?

The Inquirer reports that the sogginess of August still hasn’t made up for the aridness of May, June and July yet this year.

The drought watch was first declared for Philadelphia and parts of Pennsylvania on Aug. 5 by the Department of Environmental Protection and it called for water restrictions in 40 counties, reports the Inquirer. It remains in effect.

The drought watch was most likely influenced by the period from June 1 to Aug 31 of this year --it is ranked as the fifth warmest in the recorded 138 years in Philadelphia. Experts tell the Inquirer that the intense heat and the increased rain may be attributed to worldwide warming.

Last year was the hottest recorded in Philadelphia history and nine of the 10 hottest summers have occurred since 1991, the Inquirer reports.

Though no rainstorms are in the immediate forecast, the state drought committee meets next Thursday. We’ll see if they stick to their guns.
 

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