Drought Information Statement for 
Philadelphia/Mt. Holly Hydrologic Service Area
Valid February 20, 2026
Issued By: National Weather Service Philadelphia/Mt. Holly
Contact Information: wfophi.webmaster@noaa.gov
This product will be updated March 27,2026 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/phi/DroughtInformationStatement for previous statements. 
Please visit https://www.drought.gov/drought-status-updates for regional drought status updates.

The state of New Jersey has issued a Drought Warning for the entire state.
There are no state declarations in place for Delaware.
The state of Pennsylvania has issued either a Drought Watch or Drought Warning for our southeast Pennsylvania Counties.
The state of Maryland has issued a Drought Warning for our Maryland Eastern Shore counties. 

U.S. Drought Monitor

D4 (Exceptional Drought): No Exceptional Drought exists across the Hydrologic Service Area (HSA).
D3 (Extreme Drought): Extreme Drought exists portions of northwest New Jersey.
D2 (Severe Drought): Severe Drought exists across portions of northern and southern New Jersey, the southern Poconos, and the Lehigh Valley.
D1 (Moderate Drought): Moderate Drought exists across portions of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware, but not the Maryland Eastern Shore.
D0: (Abnormally Dry): Abnormally Dry conditions exist just about everywhere drought isn’t defined.

Recent Change in Drought Intensity

One Week Drought Monitor Class Change…
 
Drought Worsened: Degradation was observed across portions of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware.  
 
No Change: More areas remained the same versus showing degradation or improvement. 

Drought Improved: No improvement was observed.

Precipitation

Much of the HSA has seen below normal precipitation the last 30 days. 
Last 30 Days

Temperature

When averaged (ending 2/15), the entire forecast area experienced below normal temperatures the last 7 days.

Over the last 30 days, the entire forecast area experienced below normal temperatures as well.

Summary of Impacts

Hydrologic Impacts 

  ● Seven-day average streamflow conditions, ending 2/19, were mainly below normal.

Agricultural Impacts

  ● Crop moisture was running normal across the forecast area.
  ● See slide 8 for more details.

Other Impacts

  ● Per state DEPs, reservoir pools across the HSA were mainly below normal.
  ● Per the Delaware River Basin Commission, and as of February 9th, the salt front in the Delaware River Estuary was estimated at river mile marker 76.7. The normal location for this time of year is river mile marker 71. This indicates the salt line is further upstream compared to normal.

Mitigation Actions

  ● Per the state of New Jersey, a Drought Warning has been issued for the entire state.
  ● Per the state of Maryland, a Drought Warning has been issued for our Maryland Eastern Shore counties.
  ● Per the state of Delaware, there are no state declarations in place.
  ● Per the state of Pennsylvania, either a Drought Watch or Drought Warning have been issued for our Southeast Pennsylvania Counties.  

Keep in mind, the National Weather Service does not declare Drought Watches or Warnings.

Hydrologic Conditions and Impacts

Seven-day average streamflow conditions, ending 2/19, were mainly below normal.

Agricultural Impacts

Crop moisture was running normal across the forecast area.

Seven Day Precipitation Forecast

Low pressure will move across our area through today, followed by a weak cold front on Saturday. A winter storm will impact our area Sunday into Monday. High pressure builds in later Tuesday, then a warm front may lift north across our area Wednesday into Thursday.

The 8 to 14 day outlook calls for above normal temperatures and precipitation.

Long-Range Outlooks

The latest monthly and seasonal outlooks can be found on the CPC homepage.

There are no signals suggesting average monthly precipitation will be either above or below normal.

Long-Range signals suggest average monthly temperatures have a greater chance of either being normal or above normal versus below normal.