Drought Information Statement for 
Central and Southeast Illinois
Valid February 12, 2026
Issued By: WFO Lincoln, IL
Contact Information: nws.lincoln@noaa.gov

The next update will be around Thursday, February 19, if conditions persist or worsen.
Please see all currently available products at https://drought.gov/drought-information-statements.
Please visit https://www.weather.gov/ilx/DroughtInformationStatement for previous statements. 
Please visit https://www.drought.gov/drought-status-updates for regional drought status updates.
Key Messages:
Another dry week and an influx of reports of drying rural wells has led to the expansion of Severe Drought (D2) conditions across central Illinois.
A developing storm system will bring beneficial rainfall to portions of southern and central Illinois on Saturday (2/14).  There is currently a high (50-70%) chance for a 0.5” or more rainfall event in areas south of I-72, and a very high (70-90%) chance for a 0.5” or more rainfall event in areas south of US HWY 50.


U.S. Drought Monitor

Drought Intensity and Extent:
D4 (Exceptional Drought): N/A
D3 (Extreme Drought): Portions of east-central Illinois including Piatt, Douglas, and Champaign Counties, and parts of Moultrie, De Witt, McLean, Coles, Edgar, and Vermilion Counties.
D2 (Severe Drought): An expanding area that encompasses much of central, east-central and south-central Illinois.
D1 (Moderate Drought): The vast majority of counties across western, central, and southeast Illinois.
D0: (Abnormally Dry): Small areas in northwest Knox County and far eastern Crawford County.


Recent Precipitation
Over the past seven days (right), precipitation was minimal to non-existent due to a lingering high pressure pattern.


Looking at the last 30 days (left), the region was significantly drier than normal.
Last 7 days and 30 days
Image Caption: Total precipitation as a percentage of normal, as of February 11. Left image is a 30 day average, right image the last 7 days. Images from Drought.gov. 


Summary of Impacts

Hydrologic Impacts 
Streamflow is much below normal for most rivers in central parts of the state (less than 15 percent of normal). 
Near record low flow on the east end of the Sangamon River basin is impacting water supplies of Lake Decatur downstream.
Lake Decatur is reported to be between 4 to 4.5 feet below normal. Lake Springfield is about 3.5 feet below normal.

Agricultural Impacts
No recent impacts reported in the past week. 

Fire Hazard Impacts
None reported.

Other Impacts
Extremely poor to record low water table and deep soil moisture conditions.
Dozens of reports of folks hauling water due to dry rural private wells, including in Champaign, Piatt, Vermilion, Macon, Sangamon, Morgan, Cass, Moultrie, Edgar, Coles, and Montgomery Counties.

Mitigation Actions
Voluntary Stage 1 water rationing is in effect in Decatur.
Voluntary water conservation requested in Bloomington and Sullivan.


Seven Day Precipitation Forecast
A developing storm system will bring beneficial rainfall to portions of southern and central Illinois on Saturday (2/14).  There is currently a high (50-70%) chance for a 0.5” or more rainfall event in areas south of I-72, and a very high (70-90%) chance for a 0.5” or more rainfall event in areas south of US HWY 50.

In addition, there is a low (25%) chance for an additional 0.25” or more rainfall event between 2/17 and 2/19.
Image Caption: Expected rainfall over the next 7 days, valid through 6 PM Thursday, February 5. Check weather.gov/ilx for updated forecasts.
Image Caption: Expected rainfall over the next 7 days, valid through 6 AM Thursday, February 20. Check weather.gov/ilx for updated forecasts.


Long Range Outlooks
The latest monthly and seasonal outlooks can be found on the CPC homepage
There are approximately equal chances for above or below normal precipitation for the month of February.

Below normal temperatures are favored (40% to 50% chance) across central IL for February.

Image Caption: Precipitation (left) and temperature (right) outlooks for February. 
Check weather.gov/ilx for updated forecasts.

Drought Outlook
The latest monthly and seasonal outlooks can be found on the CPC homepage
Drought is forecast to improve or end across the area through the end of April.
Image Caption: 
Climate Prediction Center Seasonal Drought Outlook released Jan. 31, valid through April 30, 2026. Images from Drought.gov.