Drought — Macon, Illinois

2025-12-01 to 2025-12-31 · Macon, Illinois

Event narrative

Due to a four-month precipitation deficit, Severe (D2) to Extreme (D3) Drought was ongoing at the start of the month. However, precipitation that occurred late in the month of November led to the removal of Extreme Drought by December 2nd. The cooperative observer in Decatur reported 2.70 inches of precipitation during December, which was 0.30 inches above normal. However, this was not enough precipitation to improve the drought, and Severe Drought (D2) persisted through the month. Water levels on Lake Decatur remained 2.5 to 3 feet below normal, and voluntary stage 1 water rationing continued in the city of Decatur.

Wider weather episode

For the fifth consecutive month, much of the region experienced below normal precipitation, with deficits generally between 0.5 and 1.5 inches for the month of December. Temperatures were above normal for much of autumn, but fell below normal during December. While precipitation was below normal for the month, disturbances in late November and throughout the month of December did provide enough precipitation to lead to localized improvements in the drought, particularly south of I-72 and in areas to the west and north of Peoria. Elsewhere, the ongoing drought persisted through the month, but did not worsen. Streamflows and lake levels remained below normal.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1302439. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.