Drought conditions have expanded in the Miami Valley as a result of an abnormally low amount of rainfall coupled with dry and warm weather, said Storm Center 7 Meteorologist Jesse Maag.
>> Track the conditions: Live Doppler 7 Radar
On Thursday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture released its weekly drought monitor showing that Shelby, Logan, Darke, Miami, Champaign, Preble, Montgomery, Clark, and the northern tip of Warren County are now classified into a moderate drought.
With a moderate drought, according to the USDA classification, there are several hazardous impacts. To name a few: small brush fires occur, some trees lose leaves early, landscaping businesses suffer, grass suffers from heat stress and possibly goes dormant, and fruit yield is low.
There is only a few chances for rain in the near forecast and, to make things worse, those days of rain only expect to see light showers at best.
Throughout the weekend, most in the Miami Valley will only receive about 0.10-0.25" of rain. In order to return our region to normal conditions, we'd need at least 6" of rain. While that doesn't seem likely this weekend, rain could slightly alleviate drought conditions with a few chances later next week.
>> Heat Index: What is it? Why does it matter?
Your Storm Center 7 team of meteorologists will continue to track the drought conditions and bring you the latest.