Severe Thunderstorms in the Midwest and Arizona; Heat Continues in the Southeast and Southwest

Thunderstorms, some severe, may lead to scattered instances of flash flooding across the Midwest and Ohio Valley and southern Arizona. The threat will shift to the Mid-Atlantic coast on Thursday. Dangerous heat persists in the South and Southeast while building into the Southwest. Overnight lows will be so warm that little-to-no relief from the scorching daytime highs will be available. Read More >

Drought Severity Classifications

		Ranges
Category	Description	Possible Impacts	Palmer Drought Index	CPC Soil Moisture Model (Percentiles)	USGS Weekly Streamflow (Percentiles)	Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI)	Objective Short and Long-term Drought Indicator Blends (Percentiles)
D0	Abnormally Dry	Going into drought: short-term dryness slowing planting, growth of crops or pastures. Coming out of drought: some lingering water deficits; pastures or crops not fully recovered	-1.0 to -1.9	21-30	21-30	-0.5 to -0.7	21-30
D1	Moderate Drought	Some damage to crops, pastures; streams, reservoirs, or wells low, some water shortages developing or imminent; voluntary water-use restrictions requested	-2.0 to -2.9	11-20	11-20	-0.8 to -1.2	11-20
D2	Severe Drought	Crop or pasture losses likely; water shortages common; water restrictions imposed	-3.0 to -3.9	6-10	6-10	-1.3 to -1.5	6-10
D3	Extreme Drought	Major crop/pasture losses; widespread water shortages or restrictions	-4.0 to -4.9	3-5	3-5	-1.6 to -1.9	3-5
D4	Exceptional Drought	Exceptional and widespread crop/pasture losses; shortages of water in reservoirs, streams, and wells creating water emergencies	-5.0 or less	0-2	0-2	-2.0 or less	0-2

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Severe Thunderstorms in the Midwest and Arizona; Heat Continues in the Southeast and Southwest

Drought Classifications