Although the U.S. Drought Monitor says that more than 80 percent of the state is “abornomally dry” – state officials are not yet concerned about the beginnings of any drought.
The state’s Interagency Drought Workgroup met briefly for their regular meeting on Thursday. Weather conditions were discussed, including whether a drought stage should be declared, but no action was taken in favor of closely monitoring conditions.
Joe Dellicarpini, meteorologist/science and operations officer at the National Weather Service in Boston, told the group that while the next few days will be hot, there is rain and cooler temperatures in the forecast.
“Odds are still favoring wetter than average weather into July,” Dellicarpini said.
Still, some are cautioning residents to conserve water. Aquarion Water Company has made such a call to customers in Darien, Greenwich, New Canaan, and Stamford.
According to its annoucement, Aquarion Water Company is experiencing near-record water demands throughout its service area.
“While some areas of Connecticut experienced significant storms in recent days, the rainfall has not made up for the lack of rain in Southwest Fairfield County over the last two months,” the release states. Customers in the aforementioned towns are being asked to reduce their non-essential water use by 10 percent.
Hazardville Water Company in Enfield has also reminded customers to conserve.
The dry conditions have not yet sparked any concern among the farms in Connecticut, according to the state Department of Agriculture.
“At this time, the Department has not received any reports of farms experiencing issues due to the current drought monitor status, however, we are monitoring the impacts of the ever-changing climate. We are hopeful the significant rain the state saw this week has mitigated any concern,” wrote Kayleigh Royston, Director of Legislation and Communications.
Last week, Gov. Ned Lamont directed the state’s hot weather protocol to be activated. Residents can call 2-1-1 or go to 211ct.org online to find out where the nearest cooling center is if they need to get relief.
