Drought Information Statement for Northern Arizona Valid May 30, 2025 Issued By: National Weather Service Flagstaff, AZ Contact Information: nws.flagstaff@noaa.gov This product will be updated around June 19, 2025 or sooner if drought conditions change significantly. Please see all currently available products at https://drought.gov/drought-information-statements. Please visit https://www.weather.gov/fgz/Drought for previous statements. Please visit https://www.drought.gov/drought-status-updates?dews_region=130&state=139 for regional updates. Some drought improvement in parts of central and northern Arizona over the past month due to areas of above normal rainfall. 1 Drought intensity and Extent D3 (Extreme Drought): Gila County, and far southern Yavapai, Navajo, and Apache counties. D2 (Severe Drought): Southern/western Coconino County, central/northern Yavapai, central Navajo and Apache counties. D1 (Moderate Drought): The remainder of Coconino, Navajo, and Apache counties. Recent Change in Drought Intensity Drought Improved: One class improvement for much of Yavapai, and portions of Coconino, Navajo, and Apache counties. No Change: most of Arizona. Precipitation 120-Day Precipitation is less than 50% of normal over far northern and eastern Arizona. Areas along the Mogollon Rim and central Yavapai County have received 100-150% of normal. Summary of Impacts Hydrologic Impacts Streamflow is below normal for this time of year in much of northern and central Arizona. Agricultural Impacts Soil moisture is lower than normal, leading to areas of poor forage conditions. Ranchers are reporting that they are hauling water to livestock and that this would not be necessary following a more typical winter. Fire Hazard Impacts Fire danger has continued to slowly increase as warmer weather has developed. Forests are entering fire restrictions, with the Apache-Sitgreaves and much of the State/BLM land in stage 2 restrictions. A large fire (Greer Fire - 20,000 acres) started May 13 during high winds and low humidity. Other Impacts Winter recreation was impacted due to the lack of snowpack at higher elevations. Mitigation Actions Please refer to your municipality and/or water provider for mitigation information. Hydrologic Conditions and Impacts Streamflow over much of northern and central Arizona is less than the 25th percentile for this time of year. Some of the normally wettest areas of the state along the eastern Mogollon Rim into the White Mountains are experiencing much below normal streamflow values in the 10th percentile or lower. Agricultural Impacts Most of northern and central Arizona is reporting soil moisture in the 1st to 10th percentile. Forage for ranching purposes is less abundant than normal in most areas. Ranchers are continuing to haul water to livestock due to the drier than normal winter. Fire Hazard Impacts In June, the typical peak of fire season, there is an above normal potential for significant wildland fire in most of Arizona. This is due to lower than normal precipitation over the winter and early spring. Significant wildland fire potential is forecast to decrease to the normal range in July with the expectation of the monsoon developing. Seven Day Precipitation Forecast Subtropical moisture is expected to combine with low pressure to bring widespread rainfall from Sunday, June 1, to Tuesday, June 3. Some minor drought relief could occur with this rainfall. Long-Range Outlooks The latest monthly and seasonal outlooks can be found on the CPC homepage The latest outlooks for June through August from the Climate Prediction Center favor above normal temperatures in Arizona. The outlook is leaning toward above normal precipitation for this period, continuing through the monsoon season. Drought Outlook The latest monthly and seasonal outlooks can be found on the CPC homepage Drought conditions are forecast to persist over the state through the end of August.