Drought stricken crops on the McIntosh family farm in Missouri Valley, Iowa, on Monday, August 13, 2012. (Flickr Photo via USDA photo by Dave Kosling)
An update released this week on the nation’s drought shows worsening conditions in Midwest and Plains states. The weekly U.S. Drought Monitor map shows nearly all of Kansas is suffering from extreme or exceptional drought. State Climatologist Mary Knapp says temperatures have cooled recently but that hasn’t been enough to improve conditions.
Knapp says some areas of Kansas would need to see more than 15 inches of rain to return to normal conditions.