Drought Information Statement for Northern IN, Southern MI, Northwest OH Valid March 26, 2026 Issued By: NWS Northern IN Contact Information: nws.northernindiana@noaa.gov This product will be updated in April 2026 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/iwx/DroughtInformationStatement for previous statements. Please visit https://www.drought.gov/drought-status-updates for regional drought status updates. The biggest change to the drought monitor this week is that Extreme Drought (D3) has been eliminated across northern Indiana! All counties in north-central Indiana are now in Moderate (D1) or Severe Drought (D2). Extreme Drought (D3) continues in northwest Ohio. An active weather pattern in April may gradually ease drought conditions. U.S. Drought Monitor For some counties in northwest Ohio, there is a sharp gradient in drought conditions, especially along the US 24 corridor Drought intensity and Extent D3 (Extreme Drought): portions of Henry, Paulding, Putnam, Van Wert, and Allen counties in Ohio D2 (Severe Drought) and D1 (Moderate Drought): Portions of north-central Indiana and northwest Ohio D0: (Abnormally Dry): Mainly along the US 30 corridor in Indiana Recent Change in Drought Intensity Four Week Drought Monitor Class Change. Counties in northwest Ohio near Toledo and much of north-central Indiana saw drought improve this past week Precipitation Precipitation over the past 30 days has generally been above normal along and north I-80/I-90. South of I-80/I-90, precipitation was generally near normal to slightly below (75-100% of normal). Summary of Impacts Hydrologic Impacts Stream flows across the area remain well below normal according to the USGS water dashboard. Agricultural Impacts There are no known impacts at this time Fire Hazard Impacts There are no known impacts at this time Other Impacts There are no known impacts at this time Mitigation Actions None reported Seven Day Precipitation Forecast An active weather pattern is expected to persist over the next 7 days to end March and begin April. Multiple chances for rain and storms are ahead, especially around the middle of next week (March 31st/April 1st). Up to 2” of rain will be possible in the next 7 days across our forecast area. Long-Range Outlooks The latest monthly and seasonal outlooks can be found on the CPC homepage Issued on March 19th, the outlooks for April favors above-normal precipitation (40-50% probabilities) and above-normal temperatures (33-40% probabilities). This may help ease ongoing drought conditions. Drought Outlook The latest monthly and seasonal outlooks can be found on the CPC homepage According to the Climate Prediction Center, drought conditions are favored to end or improve during the Spring into early Summer. 2025 was the driest year on record at Fort Wayne (record through 1897) with a deficit of over 15 inches of precipitation. Year to date, precipitation is about 2 inches below normal.