Cheyenne Meteorologist: Drought May Not End Until 2022
Cheyenne-based meteorologist Don Day Jr, says unless we see an unusually wet May next month, there is a very good chance that the drought that is plaguing southeast Wyoming and much of the west will not end until 2022.
Day, who is the proprietor of Dayweather Inc.. made the comments in an interview with Glenn Woods on the ''Wakeup Wyoming" program on Monday morning [April 19th].
Day told Woods that the problem is that a "La Nina" weather pattern is currently prevalent over the pacific ocean. "Remember, a La Nina tends to be dry. An El Nino tends to be wetter," Day said.
He also said that what the region needs to snap out of the current drought pattern is a wetter-than-normal May, adding that May is typically the wettest month of the year for most of Wyoming.
He said the problem is that we will need not just a typically wet May, but one that is significantly wetter than normal. While it's impossible to know for sure at this point whether that will happen, he told Woods that right now it "doesn't look good."
In any case, he said the next five weeks or so will be very important in terms of the ongoing drought and its potential severity. He also said that while he doesn't think this summer will be as dry as last summer, "that's a lot like being the tallest elf."
Water officials across the west are becoming increasingly concerned about the drought, and some reports indicate that man-made lakes and reservoirs will soon drop to a level that will lead to the first-ever declaration of a water shortage.
You can hear the entire interview in the attached audio clip: