Drought — Burnett, Wisconsin

2023-07-25 to 2023-07-31 · Burnett, Wisconsin

Event narrative

Drought conditions were slower to impact Burnett County with D1 Moderate Drought prevailing for most of the month outside of a small, brief area of D0 Abnormally Dry conditions during the middle of the month. Rainfall deficits of 1 to 3 inches for the month led to D2 Severe Drought being introduced with the update on the 25th across the far northern reaches of the county.

Wider weather episode

Drought conditions rapidly worsened across the Northland during the month of July. After record snowfall in many areas over the winter, dry conditions took hold for the spring into the summer with rainfall deficits of 1 to 3 inches for the month across much of northwestern Wisconsin, although there was an area of slightly above normal rainfall from eastern Bayfield County into southern Ashland, northeastern Sawyer and far northern Price counties. D1 Moderate Drought quickly took hold across the area during the beginning of the month with D2 Severe Drought spreading across much of the region as the month progressed. An area of D3 Extreme Drought was introduced during the middle of the month from northern Douglas County into northern Bayfield County as the sandy soils continued to dry out. Area creeks and rivers dropped to low flow levels and crops began to suffer across much of the region.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1125809. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.