Easing drought in many US locations, except Texas

A mixed picture for drought in the United States. The heat continues in some places, but eases in others.... About the south, the Monitor says: Over 4 inches of rain soaked part of the central Lower Mississippi Valley, allowing D0 to D3 conditions to be scaled back to the west.

Elsewhere, moderate to locally heavy rains fell on northeast Oklahoma and southern Missouri, but appeared insufficient to substantially change drought conditions there.

In the rest of the region, the theme of the last year was again played out: Little or no precipitation, and increasing moisture deficits except in small isolated areas. Several small adjustments were made in parts of the region, but of course the sprawling D4 area centered on Texas can’t be depicted any more seriously than it already was. Some larger-scale changes included expansion of D4 with growing shorter-term deficits in southeast Oklahoma, a westward expansion of D0 to D3 conditions along the immediate southwestern Louisiana coast, and the extension of D1 conditions eastward to cover most of Arkansas. Several reports of dry pastures affecting livestock were noted, and despite recent near-normal precipitation, water supplies remain a concern in northwest Arkansas as well as throughout the large area of exceptional drought....