The record
Everything the slot carries, as measured. Series arrays are drawn above and listed here in full.
| event_type | Drought |
|---|---|
| ncei_event_id | 5,719,351 |
| episode_id | 2,413,504 |
| begin_utc | 1999-08-01T05:00:00+00:00 |
| end_utc | 1999-09-01T04:59:00+00:00 |
| state | DELAWARE |
| cz_type | Z |
| cz_name | INLAND SUSSEX |
| deaths_direct | 0 |
| deaths_indirect | 0 |
| injuries_direct | 0 |
| injuries_indirect | 0 |
| wfo_source | GOVT OFFICIAL |
| episode_narrative | The drought continued throughout the first half of August across Delaware. Crops were decimated. It was estimated that 70 percent of the hay crop, 50 percent of the corn crop and 30 percent of the soybean crop were lost. The drought started to break during the second half of the month as the strong ridge of high pressure was suppressed farther to the south. For the first month since March, monthly rainfall totals for August were near normal levels. The state of Delaware's August average rainfall total was 3.66 inches, 81 percent of normal. On a county weighted average August monthly rainfall totals ranged from 3.7 inches in Kent County to 5.9 inches in New Castle County. The August normal monthly rainfall is around 4.5 inches. The first half of August continued the dire drought conditions across Delaware. A statewide drought warning was already in effect. On August 2nd, Bethany Beach became the first coastal municipality to issue mandatory water restrictions and banned all watering of lawns and washing of cars. Shallow wells were drying in Kent and Sussex Counties. The same day United Water of Delaware, the state's largest industrial supplier of water asked the city of Wilmington to release water from the Hoopes Reservoir and asked permission from the Delaware River Basin Commission to draw all of the freshwater passing its plant along the White Clay Creek. On the 10th, United Water built an inflatable dam across the White Clay Creek at Stanton. The drought already forced the City of Newark to shut down its water treatment plant on the White Clay Creek and rely on water from United Water. In Mid-August about 75 percent of all the streams in the Middle Atlantic States were at or setting record streamflow lows for the date. Salt water intrusion continued across the White Clay Creek as well as in shallow coastal wells. Since the drought warning was issued in July, consumption fell by only 5 to 10 percent. With no end in sight, on August 5th Governor Thomas Carper declared a drought emergency for residents of Delaware (two-thirds of the state's population) north of the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal. The declaration banned lawn and shrub watering, washing of cars and sidewalks and the running of ornamental fountains. It also ordered industrial users to cut consumption by 20 percent. The governor could also regulate water use through rationing and influence how utilities and communities share water. A hot-line was set up to report violators with fines reaching $500. This was the first drought emergency since 1995. South of the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal, a drought warning remained in effect and people asked to limit water use voluntarily. Crop losses continued to mount across the state. The drought destroyed the corn crop as the rain in mid month came too late. Farmers were hit with a double whammy of both drought and low commodity prices because of a worldwide crop glut and ideal growing conditions in the central part of the country. Entire fields of corn were lost. Farmers hope to salvage the soybean and lima bean crops. The USDA was estimating the state's corn crop harvest at 14.2 million bushels, eight percent below last year and the smallest since 1993. The soybean crop harvest was estimated at 5.6 million bushels, down 21 percent from last year and the smallest since 1995. On August 11th Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman declared all of Delaware and 19 counties in Maryland a drought disaster. This made farmers in those counties and adjacent ones eligible for low interest loans of up to $500,000. Farmers eligible for help must have lost at least 30 percent of their crops, have adequate security, be turned down by two banks and be able to repay the loan. The Department of Agriculture also will provide $20 million dollars in grants to provide emergency services to low income migrant and seasonal farm workers in declared drought disaster areas. The Small Business Administration will also make federal disaster loans available to small agriculture dependent businesses. |
| year | 1,999 |
Provenance
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Storage: spine