Philadelphia region no longer under any drought category for 1st time since September 2024
For the first time since September of last year, the Philadelphia area can say that it is no longer in a drought.
The weekly U.S. Drought Monitor was released Thursday and revealed that 0% of the area was under moderate drought conditions for the first time since Sept. 10, 2024. This was down from 15% of the region just one week ago. While 20% of the area remains abnormally dry, this classification is not considered to be drought conditions.
Extremely dry conditions settled into the area late last summer, producing one of the driest falls ever recorded in Philadelphia's history.
During September, October and November of 2024, only 3.24 inches of rain fell at the Philadelphia International Airport. This was the third driest September-November period ever recorded. October itself ended up being the driest ever on record, with only a trace of rain reported in Philadelphia, which isn't even considered measurable rainfall (0.01 inches or greater).
Into November, drought conditions rapidly spread, with the entire area slipping into a severe drought by the end of the month and remaining there through the first half of December. Some relief was felt in January and February, but it wasn't until March that several rainy patterns developed to steadily alleviate those drought conditions.
Since March 1, 2025, Philadelphia International Airport has received 14.41 inches of rain, which is 3.55 inches more than the normal amount for this period.
As we head into the hotter months of the year, this reprieve from the drought could be only temporary.
Currently, the Climate Prediction Center forecasts that the region has an equal chance of receiving above- or below-normal precipitation amounts over the next month.
