National Weather Service United States Department of Commerce
DROUGHT INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GAYLORD MI
1155 AM EDT THU SEP 6 2018

...DROUGHT INFORMATION STATEMENT FOR NORTHERN MICHIGAN...

.SYNOPSIS...DROUGHT CONDITIONS HAVE BEEN ALLEVIATED OVER THE PAST 
WEEK DUE TO SIGNIFICANT RAINFALL ACROSS NORTHERN MICHIGAN... 
ACCOMPANIED AT TIMES BY SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCING DAMAGING WIND 
GUSTS ON AUGUST 28TH.  SEVERE DROUGHT CONDITIONS ACROSS FAR NORTHERN 
LOWER MICHIGAN HAVE BEEN ELIMINATED WITH THE RECENT RAINFALL...WHICH 
HAS TOTALED 2 TO 3 INCHES IN SOME AREAS OVER THE PAST WEEK.

.AREAS AFFECTED AND DROUGHT CATEGORIES...

THE FOLLOWING DESCRIPTION OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN DROUGHT CONDITIONS IS 
BASED ON THE MOST RECENT U.S. DROUGHT MONITOR PUBLISHED ON SEPTEMBER 
6TH...WITH THE REMOVAL OF DROUGHT CATEGORY D2...SEVERE DROUGHT... 
FROM NORTHERN LOWER MICHIGAN.

DROUGHT CATEGORY D1...MODERATE DROUGHT. RESULTS IN SOME CROP 
DAMAGE...STREAMS AND RESERVOIRS RUNNING LOW.  AREAS INCLUDED IN 
DROUGHT CATEGORY D1 INCLUDES ALL OR PARTS OF THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES: 
EMMET...CHEBOYGAN...PRESQUE ISLE...CHARLEVOIX...ANTRIM...OTSEGO... 
MONTMORENCY...ALPENA.

DROUGHT CATEGORY D0...ABNORMALLY DRY.  POTENTIALLY DEVELOPING INTO 
DROUGHT...SHORT TERM DRYNESS SLOWING CROP GROWTH.  AREAS INCLUDED IN 
DROUGHT CATEGORY D0 INCLUDES ALL OR PARTS OF THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES: 
CHIPPEWA...CRAWFORD...OSCODA...ALCONA...MISSAUKEE...ROSCOMMON... 
OGEMAW...IOSCO. 

.RECENT CLIMATOLOGICAL TRENDS...

PRECIPITATION DEFICITS OVER THE PAST SEVEN DAYS ACROSS NORTHERN 
MICHIGAN HAVE BEEN RUNNING 150-300+ PERCENT OF NORMAL ACROSS NORTHERN 
LOWER MICHIGAN...AND 100-200 PERCENT OF NORMAL ACROSS MOST OF 
EASTERN UPPER MICHIGAN SAVE FOR A SMALL AREA AROUND SAULT STE MARIE 
AND KINROSS OF 75-100 PERCENT NORMAL RAINFALL.  FOR THE MONTH OF 
AUGUST...RAINFALL DEFICITS RANGED FROM 50-100 PERCENT OF NORMAL 
ACROSS THE TIP OF THE MITT AND HIGHER TERRAIN OF NORTHERN LOWER 
MICHIGAN AND CHIPPEWA COUNTY...AND FROM 100-200 PERCENT OF NORMAL 
ELSEWHERE. 

SELECTED RAINFALL TOTALS FOR THE PAST WEEK ENDING 8AM SEPTEMBER 6TH:

                          THIS WEEK    LAST WEEK ENDING 8/30:
TRAVERSE CITY (TVC)       2.90         3.66 INCHES  
ALPENA (APN)              2.64         1.96
GAYLORD (GLR)             2.06         2.68
EAST JORDAN               1.91         2.78
ST. IGNACE                1.87         2.31
CHARLEVOIX                1.55         2.79  
STANDISH                  1.54         1.62
CHEBOYGAN                 1.44         2.53
PETOSKEY                  1.41         3.01
CADILLAC                  1.38         2.53
DETOUR VILLAGE            1.38         1.75
HOUGHTON LAKE (HTL)       1.26         1.41
SAULT STE MARIE (SSM)     0.81         1.07

RECENT MONTHS PRECIPITATION DEPARTURES FROM NORMAL

                          APR    MAY    JUN    JUL    AUG
SAULT STE MARIE           0.00  +0.48  -1.27  -1.36  -1.21
HOUGHTON LAKE            +1.02  +1.06  -1.92  -0.02  -1.31 
ALPENA                   +2.64  +0.28  -1.75  -0.85  -0.14
TRAVERSE CITY            +1.77  +0.35  -0.90  -1.41  +0.64
GAYLORD                  +2.23  +0.50  -1.81  +0.26  +0.27

AFTER A VERY COLD AND SNOWY APRIL...TEMPERATURES REBOUNDED DURING 
MAY.  SAULT STE MARIE... ALPENA...HOUGHTON LAKE...TRAVERSE CITY... 
AND GAYLORD ALL RECORDED A TOP FIVE WARMEST MAY ON RECORD (TRAVERSE 
CITY RECORDED ITS WARMEST MAY).  TEMPERATURES REMAINED WARM IN 
JUNE... CAPPED OFF BY A RECORD SETTING HEAT WAVE DURING THE LAST 
COUPLE DAYS OF JUNE AND CONTINUING THROUGH THE FOURTH OF JULY 
HOLIDAY (WHICH INCLUDED A 99 DEGREE HIGH AT ALPENA ON JUNE 30TH). 
SAULT STE MARIE AND ALPENA BOTH RECORDED TOP FIVE WARMEST JULYS ON 
RECORD.  AUGUST ALSO ENDED UP AS A WARM MONTH...WITH TOP TEN WARMEST 
AUGUSTS ON RECORD AT SAULT STE MARIE (3RD WARMEST)...HOUGHTON LAKE 
(9TH WARMEST)...ALPENA (5TH WARMEST)...TRAVERSE CITY (9TH 
WARMEST)...AND GAYLORD (6TH WARMEST).

.SOIL MOISTURE CONDITIONS...

SOIL MOISTURE WAS WELL ABOVE NORMAL THIS SPRING...ABOVE THE 90TH 
PERCENTILE ACROSS NORTHERN LOWER MICHIGAN THROUGH THE END OF MAY. 
SOIL MOISTURE BEGAN TO DROP DURING JUNE WITH THE DEVELOPMENT OF HOT 
AND DRY CONDITIONS.  AS OF SEPTEMBER 6TH...SOIL MOISTURE PERCENTILES 
HAVE INCREASED ABOVE THE 80TH PERCENTILE (ABOVE NORMAL) ACROSS AREAS 
SOUTH OF THE M-72 CORRIDOR IN LOWER MICHIGAN...AND WITHIN THE 
"NORMAL" RANGE ELSEWHERE (CONSIDERED TO BE BETWEEN THE 30TH AND 70TH 
PERCENTILES). SATELLITE DERIVED SOIL MOISTURE ANOMALIES SHOW SURFACE 
SOIL MOISTURE (TOP 2CM) HAS INCREASED ABOVE THE 80TH PERCENTILE 
ACROSS ALL OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN...WHILE ROOT ZONE (TOP 1M) SOIL 
MOISTURE IS ABOVE THE 95TH PERCENTILE ACROSS PARTS OF EASTERN UPPER 
AND ALONG THE LAKE HURON SHORELINE COUNTIES OF NORTHERN LOWER 
MICHIGAN.

.STREAMFLOW CONDITIONS...

DISCHARGE VALUES AT MOST RIVER GAGING STATIONS ACROSS EASTERN UPPER 
AND NORTHERN LOWER MICHIGAN ARE NOW RUNNING ABOVE NORMAL THANKS TO 
RECENT RAINFALL.

CURRENT STAGE AND DISCHARGE VALUES VERSUS NORMAL AS OF SEPTEMBER 6:

                          DISCHARGE (CFS)   PCNT NRML/1 WEEK CHANGE

PINE R NEAR RUDYARD           131                127%/+ 13%
JORDAN R NEAR EAST JORDAN     200                116%/   0%
STURGEON R AT WOLVERINE       282                153%/- 18%
PIGEON R NEAR VANDERBILT      115                177%/+ 22%
THUNDER BAY R NEAR BOLTON     577                172%/+ 80%
PLATTE R AT HONOR             189                159%/+  8%
BOARDMAN R NEAR MAYFIELD      170                178%/+ 18%
SB AU SABLE R NEAR LUZERNE    172                117%/+  6%
AU SABLE R NEAR RED OAK      1080                162%/+ 17%
AU SABLE R AT MIO            1300                157%/+ 27%
AU SABLE R NEAR MCKINLEY     1580                167%/+ 11%
AU SABLE R NEAR CURTISVILLE  1670                163%/+  7%
AU SABLE R NEAR AU SABLE     2130                175%/+ 31%
MANISTEE R NEAR SHERMAN      1150                129%/- 12%
MANISTEE R NEAR MESICK       1320                130%/-  3%
MANISTEE R NEAR WELLSTON     2000                138%/- 17%
PINE R NEAR HOXEYVILLE        278                115%/- 29%
CLAM R AT VOGEL CENTER         82                 90%/- 26%
RIFLE R NEAR STERLING         649                336%/+ 11%
SB TOBACCO R NEAR BEAVERTON   347                501%/+168%
TOBACCO R AT BEAVERTON        988                448%/+171%

.ADDITIONAL INFORMATION...

U.S. DROUGHT MONITOR:
droughtmonitor.unl.edu

NATIONAL INTEGRATED DROUGHT INFORMATION SYSTEM: 
www.drought.gov/drought

CLIMATE PREDICTION CENTER:
www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov

.NEXT ISSUANCE...

THIS WILL BE THE FINAL DROUGHT INFORMATION STATEMENT ISSUED UNLESS 
DROUGHT CATEGORY D2 (SEVERE DROUGHT) CONDITIONS REDEVELOP.

&&

$$