More Moisture For Northeast and West Central Missouri, But Columbia Still In Extreme Drought

Drought conditions in Missouri as of May 16th, 2023. (The U.S. Drought Monitor is jointly produced by the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the United States Department of Agriculture, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Map courtesy of NDMC.)

Areas of Northeast and Southwest Missouri that entered drought last week saw improvement in this week’s Drought Monitor, but the worst drought conditions remain around Columbia. The weekly update shows extreme drought continuing to hover over Columbia, as well as a patch on Western Moniteau, southeastern Cooper and northern Morgan counties. An area of northwestern Barton and southwestern Vernon counties that had entered extreme drought last week returned to severe drought. All or parts of 19 counties were upgraded to moderate drought from severe, including Chariton, Marion, Monroe, Montgomery, Ralls, Randolph, and Shelby counties in the northeast and Camden, Cedar, Hickory, and St Clair counties in West Central Missouri. Abnormal dryness also shrunk from much of Southern Missouri, as well as parts of the northwest. However, eastern Adair County and areas surrounding Bethel in northern Shelby county entered moderate drought this week.

In total, 32.3 percent of Missouri is in some stage of drought, with the area in extreme drought now just 0.7 percent. Another 11.1 percent is in severe drought. 38 percent of the state remains in abnormal dryness.