Drought Information Statement for Southeast LA and Southwest MS Valid May 14, 2026 Issued By: NWS New Orleans/Baton Rouge Contact Information: sr-lix.webmaster@noaa.gov This product will be updated May 21, 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/lix/DroughtInformationStatement for previous statements. 1 U.S. Drought Monitor Link to the latest U.S. Drought Monitor for SE Louisiana and SW Mississippi Heavy rainfall allowed for widespread drought improvement. As much as 4 to 8 inches of rain fell over Mother’s Day Weekend. Drought intensity and extent: D3 (Exceptional Drought): Small portion of Coastal Louisiana along the Gulf D2 (Severe Drought): Small portion of SW and Coastal Mississippi and Southeast Louisiana D0-D1 (Abnormally Dry to Moderate Drought): Parts of Southern Mississippi and areas near the Coastal Lakes Recent Change in Drought Intensity Link to the latest 4-week change map for SE Louisiana and SW Mississippi One Week Drought Monitor Class Change Drought Worsened (Yellows): No worsening conditions occurred. No Change (Gray): No changes in category this week. Drought Improved (Greens): Significant improvement was made across the Southern Mississippi and portions of the Southeast Louisiana Precipitation Several inches of rainfall over the last week helped to alleviate drought for a large part of the region. In the last month, some portions of Southern Mississippi and the Florida Parishes have had nearly a foot of rain. Despite above normal rainfall in most areas, extreme Southern Louisiana remains dry with only a few inches of rain noted. Temperature Rainfall and cloud cover kept things cooler over the last week. Temperatures are ranging from the mid 60s to the mid 70s for averages. This means that we are generally only a few degrees above and below normal or generally right around average for this time of year. Rapid Onset Drought Outlook Links to the latest Climate Prediction Center 8 to 14 day Temperature Outlook and Precipitation Outlook. Summarize conditions and impacts here Agricultural Impacts Soils moistures have gone from below normal to near or even above. Seasonal crops may have to contend with some saturated conditions instead of dry. Image Captions: Above: CPC Calculated Soil Moisture Ranking Percentile valid May 14, 2026 The Wild Fire Potential for May indicated that conditions have improved and June is looking favorable as well. Although fuels are not as dry now, caution should always be exercised when burning. To reduce the risk of wildfires, check with local officials before burning. Fire Hazard Impacts Link to Wildfire Potential Outlooks from the National Interagency Coordination Center. Seven Day Precipitation Forecast After a dry couple of days, we will have rainfall return to the forecast. As of now, amounts are forecasted to be much less than the previous week. Totals are expected to be around an inch or less. Monthly Temperature and Rainfall Outlook The latest monthly and seasonal outlooks can be found on the CPC homepage May’s Outlook for temperatures are indicating that the above normal warmth will continue. The Monthly Outlook for rainfall remains above normal as noted with the recent rainfall events. Summary of Impacts Links: See/submit Condition Monitoring Observer Reports (CMOR) and view the Drought Impacts Reporter Agricultural Impacts Crops could be adversely affected. Agricultural communities may have to depend on irrigation more heavily. Stock ponds could also be affected. Fire Hazard Impacts The wildfire threat has decreased across the SE Louisiana and Southern Mississippi. Always exercise caution if burning. Mitigation Actions None known at this time. Please refer to your municipality, water provider, and local Emergency Management for any mitigation information Other Information Please encourage use of the CMOR (link above) to report drought impacts For Questions or comments please contact: julie.lesko@noaa.gov