Drought — Southern Berkshire, Massachusetts

2024-12-01 to 2024-12-16 · Southern Berkshire, Massachusetts

Wider weather episode

Abnormally dry conditions across portions of western Massachusetts resulted in the development of severe drought conditions (Severe - D2) across portions of Berkshire County starting on November 12, 2024 and continuing into December. On November 7, 2024, the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs issued a Level 2 (Significant) drought status for Berkshire County which was later upgraded to Level 3 (Critical) on November 19, 2024. Residents, facilities and businesses were urged to aggressively reduce indoor water use. The dry conditions also led to hundreds of small wildfires across the state, some of which occurred in Berkshire County. The Level 3 drought status continued through the month of December with D2 severe drought conditions primarily lasting through the middle of the month in Berkshire County.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1229645. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.