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Parts of South Dakota face moderate drought conditions

Map showing drought levels in South Dakota as of May 25, 2023.
Brad Rippey
/
U.S. Drought Monitor
Map showing drought levels in South Dakota as of May 25, 2023. Orange areas are experiencing moderate drought, while yellow areas are experiencing "abnormally dry" conditions.

Parts of South Dakota are experiencing moderate drought, though officials say conditions are generally not as bad as recent years.

Ryan Lueck is a meteorologist at Aberdeen National Weather Service. He said while dry conditions are not severe, some areas are experiencing more problems than others.

"It looks like we do have some drought. It's D1 moderate drought across the southeastern part of the state, and then a couple of other smaller areas in the corners out west. But otherwise, just a little bit abnormally dry." Lueck said.

He said conditions varied more across the state last year.

“Last year at the end of May, it was pretty wet across the northeastern part of the state, but quite a bit drier across central, western and southeastern South Dakota." said Lueck.

Lueck expects conditions to improve if favorable rainfall continues.

Madeline Grabow is a South Dakota Public Broadcasting intern based in Sioux Falls. She is a sophomore at Georgetown University studying international politics.