Arizona’s high country still plagued by drought, despite recent storms

PHOENIX — A series of storms in recent months has helped Arizona’s high country battle an ongoing drought, but one weather official says the amount of snow it has brought is still not enough.

Mark O’Malley with the National Weather Service told KTAR News 92.3 FM that Flagstaff has only seen about 10.5 inches of snow this winter season, seven inches less than normal.

“They were doing really well up until about the past week,” O’Malley said.  “Every day you go without snow, you fall a little further behind. But hopefully we can make it up later this month.”

O’Malley said a wet winter recharges reservoirs, allowing residents to get the water they need for the next year.

But residents shouldn’t worry: O’Malley said northern Arizona has through January to “catch up where we’re going to fall behind in the next couple of weeks.”

“Last year was just abysmal for snow,” he added. Flagstaff only had around 38 inches of snow all winter, well below the 102-inch average.

However, several storms in October and November of this year have chipped away at the drought “really slowly,” O’Malley said.

“It’s a prolonged drought, so one or two storms won’t eliminate (it). It will take many steady rain events to…help in the long run.”

KTAR News 92.3 FM’s Jim Cross contributed to this report. 

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