Wednesday, September 26, 2001 - Page updated at 12:00 AM
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Print view2001 drought almost worst
It's official: The drought of 2001 was the second-worst in state history overall, and the worst ever in some ways and in some places.
The water year ends Sunday, and with it, this year's drought. It's too early to predict whether the coming water year will also be dry.
This water year, which began last Oct. 1, was among the driest on record for all Washington rivers, but the absolute driest ever recorded for the Wenatchee.
The state is past the most difficult stretch of the drought's effects, with the irrigation season at a close.
The drought was very nearly record-breaking. In a 1977 drought, total precipitation received from October 1976 through September 1977 ranged from 50 percent to 75 percent of normal levels, and in parts of Eastern Washington it was as low as 42 percent to 45 percent of normal.
This year's drought saw total precipitation at 56 percent to 74 percent of normal.
The fire season was far worse, with 223,857 acres burned in 1,162 fires, compared with 10,800 acres burned in 1977.
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