AUSTIN, Texas — It's the first Thursday of 2024, which means it's also time for the first drought monitor release of the year.
While we did get good rain as we headed into the new year, the results on the drought monitor do not bring much relief. In fact, there was virtually no change in drought levels anywhere in the KVUE viewing area, though there was some regression into the "severe" drought in the Brazos Valley, just east of Lee County. This largely was due in part because most of the rain that fell this past week was past the cutoff point for drought monitor recording (Tuesday at 7 a.m.).
We saw virtually no change statewide. The only notable change was that areas not in any drought decreased by around 1%, whereas the "abnormally dry" category increased by that same percentage.
However, there is a very good chance of rain Thursday evening into Friday morning, as well as another rain and storm chance heading into Monday afternoon, which could help improve drought conditions in Central Texas, especially with the El Niño winter likely. This, in addition to the rain that fell past the cutoff point, should help to improve drought conditions both locally and statewide.
We'll continue to track the rain chances and the effect the rain could have on the drought, so stick with KVUE for the latest as we continue to track it.
In the meantime, your 7-day outlook is below.
