Drought Information Statement for Northern Arizona Valid November 26, 2025 Issued By: National Weather Service Flagstaff, AZ Contact Information: nws.flagstaff@noaa.gov This product will be updated around December 18, 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. Drought has improved over much of central and northern Arizona due to additional heavy rainfall in mid to late November. Severe Drought continues in much of Apache County and northern Coconino County where recent rainfall was lighter. 1 U.S. Drought Monitor Drought intensity and Extent D2 (Severe Drought): Far northern Coconino County, much of Apache County. D1 (Moderate Drought): Western Yavapai and Coconino counties, most of Navajo and northern Apache counties. Recent Change in Drought Intensity Four Week Drought Monitor Class Change. Drought Improved: Significant 2 class improvement in central and eastern Yavapai County. A large area of 1 class improvement for all but far northern and eastern Arizona. No Change: Northern Coconino County. Portions of Navajo and Apache counties. Precipitation 120-Day precipitation from the Mogollon Rim into Yavapai and Gila counties is 125-175% of normal with localized 200%+ values in eastern Yavapai and southeast Coconino. Drier conditions have been observed in far northern and eastern Arizona. Summary of Impacts Hydrologic Impacts Streamflow has been much above normal for the past 2 weeks. Agricultural Impacts Soil moisture is lower than normal in north central Arizona, leading to areas of poor forage conditions. Some of the recent rainfall may have been too late in the season to have much impact on forage as temperatures get colder, but stock tanks were refilled in many areas. Soil moisture is now above normal from the Mogollon Rim south into Yavapai and Gila counties. Fire Hazard Impacts Fire danger has decreased due to recent rainfall and is now rated as low. Other Impacts Winter 2024-25 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 most of central and parts of northern Arizona is much above normal due to recent rainfall. The Verde and Agua Fria River systems have had especially heavy flows over the past week. Agricultural Impacts Well above normal soil moisture is present from the Mogollon Rim south and west. An area of 20-30th percentile soil moisture persists in north central Arizona. Forage for ranching was less abundant than normal this summer in most areas. Ranchers continued to haul water to livestock due to the drier than normal winter through mid summer period. Recent rains at most higher elevation areas have been too late in the season to improve forage, but stock tanks in many areas refilled at least partially. Fire Hazard Impacts Significant wildland fire potential is forecast to be in the normal range through the end of the year. This potential is typically quite low for winter in northern Arizona. Long-Range Outlooks The latest monthly and seasonal outlooks can be found on the CPC homepage The latest outlooks for December through February from the Climate Prediction Center are leaning toward above normal temperatures. The precipitation outlook is leaning towards drier than normal conditions. The probability of below normal precipitation has decreased since the previous outlooks. Drought Outlook The latest monthly and seasonal outlooks can be found on the CPC homepage Drought conditions are forecast to persist over portions of Arizona through at least the end of February, 2026.