By Stephen Smoot
Although Harrison County has enjoyed its 36th “wettest year to date over the past 130 years,” the 31st driest June on record, plus continuing dry and hot conditions through July, have pushed part of the county officially into drought. The drought categorization comes from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Integrated Drought Information System.
The system provides alerts and vital information concerning droughts or other impacts of temperature and precipitation for each county in the United States.
Until last week, about 85 percent of Harrison County, all but a sliver of the southern portion, was not placed in any drought or limited precipitation category. Southern Harrison was in the category of “D0 abnormally dry.” Now, the abnormally dry portion has entered “D1 moderate drought.”
Drought categories also include “D2 severe drought,” “D3 extreme drought,” and “D4 exceptional drought.”
According to NIDIS, 10,501 people live in the area of Harrison County affected by the drought, a little more than 15 percent of the population.
The last 30 days have seen the entire county enjoying less than the historical average of rainfall for this time of year. The northwestern third and southeastern corner of the county have only had between 25 and 50 percent of normal rainfall. Between 75 and 100 percent of normal amounts fell along the US 50 corridor and surrounding areas extending west from Clarksburg. The remainder of Harrison County, including Shinnston, got between 50 and 75 percent.
Over the past 60 days, the US 50 corridor actually got between 100 and 150 percent of normal rainfall, while most of the rest of the county outside of the northwestern third, including Shinnston, got between 75 and 100 percent of normal precipitation. The rest lay between 50 and 75 percent.
Temperatures for the entire county over the past 30 days have run between four and six degrees more than normal. Over the past seven days, the temperatures rose to between six and eight degrees above normal.
Drought conditions have also affected local waterways. The West Fork River, measured at the Harrison-Marion County line is categorized as having a below normal streamflow.
Some relief may come soon. Over the next week, most of the northern part of the county is predicted to receive between three-fourths of an inch and an inch of rain while the county south of US 50 may get between one half and three-fourths of an inch. The rain, according to predictions, will not prevent drought conditions from continuing to get worse throughout the county.
The website uses a 30 year period as a historical baseline from which to compare temperatures, precipitation, and other metrics. Over the course of the 21st century so far, Harrison County has escaped severe drought conditions. The last D3 and D4 conditions came during the late 1980s. The 1960s and 1930s featured much longer stretches of sustained and damaging D3 and D4 conditions.