Drought Conditions Worsen in Parts of Southern Wisconsin

Drought conditions in parts of southern Wisconsin have continued to worsen, with some spots now in the most intense category on the U.S. Drought Monitor classification scale. The latest drought monitor released Thursday lists portions of eastern Vernon, northeastern Crawford, northwestern Richland and far northwestern Sauk counties as experiencing exceptional drought, the driest classification on the scale. Areas north and west of a line from Lancaster to Cobb to Lodi to Poynette, as well as eastern Green and western Rock counties, meanwhile, are seeing extreme drought conditions, the second-driest category. Statewide, 84.5% of Wisconsin’s land area and 4.2 million of the state’s residents are seeing some level of drought.