Rains push quarter of S.D. out of drought

Nearly 25 percent of South Dakota is no longer in a drought, a weekly drought report says.

Spring rainstorms have eased drought conditions across much of South Dakota, especially in the northeast part of the state where, in many areas, the drought has been eliminated altogether.

As of June 4, 24.44 percent of South Dakota was no longer in any type of drought. That’s an improvement from the previous week when 17.11 percent of the state was free of drought. Three months ago, all of South Dakota was in some form of drought.

The monitor is maintained by the National Drought Mitigation Center in Lincoln, Neb. The report measures drought on a scale ranging from abnormally dry to moderate, severe, extreme and exceptional.

Areas of moderate to severe drought remain in some areas of South Dakota, especially in the southwest, where the last sliver of extreme drought anywhere in the state hangs on in southern Fall River County.