Florida

Florida is currently experiencing a drought. In fact, this may be the worst drought in Florida, ever. When water restrictions are placed in effect, they are referred to in phases: Phase I, Phase II, and Phase III. The biggest difference between the phases is when you can water your lawn, going from three days a week between 4am and 8am, to two days a week between 4am and 8am, to one day a week between 4am and 7am. Currently much of south Florida is under Phase II, however, the City of West Palm Beach has voluntarily adopted Phase III.

Lake Okeechobee levels are currently 4 feet below normal this time of year at 9.37 feet above sea level, nearing the all time record low level of 8.97 feet above sea level. Lake Okeechobee is the center of an interconnected system for Florida. Because the big lake is in the midst of the region-spanning Kissimmee-Okeechobee-Everglades ecosystem, conditions in and around the lake affect lands, rivers, people and creatures to the east, west, north and south. (from the South Florida Water Management website.)

So what does this drought mean? It means fuel to the current wildfires as well as ones that could start due to the dry ground conditions. It means we need to conserve water or we will be in big trouble. The rainy season doesn't really get going until late May, and we already have tons of wildfires burning in Florida alone. Here is a map of the State of Florida and all the wildfires currently burning:



Thanks to a major wildfire up in northern Florida that started in Georgia, and a fire in nearby Collier County, most of south Florida has been under smoke and currently has health warnings in effect until the weekend. Basically, that means to not do any exercising outdoors, and limit outdoor activity to a minimum. Subtropical Storm Andrea has been downgraded to subtropical depression status, however, it was unclear as to how much rain she would bring in to the region to help the wildfire status. Man, it's busy here in Florida for those meteorologists. But where there's weather news, there I'll be. This is Gabbi reporting from Blogger.com weather center. =)


****************************UPDATE********************************************
Water Management officials have now imposed once-a-week watering restrictions on Broward and Plam Beach Counties, setting the toughest limits ever in response to one of the worst droughts in history, according to Sun-Sentinel. For more info, see Sun-Sentinel article.