Drought — Decatur, Indiana

2023-12-19 to 2023-12-31 · Decatur, Indiana

Event narrative

Continued well below normal rainfall caused severe drought intensity to begin on December 19, 2023 for areas southwest of Greensburg in Decatur County. Severe drought was downgraded to moderate drought on January 16, 2024.

Wider weather episode

Abnormally Dry (D0) and/or Moderate Drought (D1) intensity was common across central Indiana from late May 2023 to early August 2023, and again from mid-September 2023 into December. A very dry November with generally only 0.75 to 1.50 inches of precipitation promoted the expansion of Severe Drought (D2) conditions from southeastern Illinois into southern portions of Indiana during mid-December.

The December 19 update indicated D2 expanding from points south and west of Bloomington to all of central Indiana's southern third, which was maintained through the January 16, 2024 update. No known impacts occurred due to no ongoing agriculture during the winter season.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1153678. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.