PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Drenching downpours in Philadelphia and New Jersey led to some issues on the roads Tuesday. Some areas had localized flooding, and a tornado warning was issued at one point for locations down the Jersey Shore.
But the rain that fell still wasn't enough to improve New Jersey's drought watch, which has lasted for about a month.
"We would need several more rains like [what] occurred today to bring us back to near-normal conditions,” said New Jersey State Geologist Jeff Hoffman.
He said rain needs to come down over several storms, not all at once, like a hurricane for example.
Hoffman added that normal conditions include about an inch of rain per week in New Jersey. This summer, the state has only been recording about half of that.
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"Stream flows are still below normal in southern New Jersey. Ground waters, at least this afternoon, were still low level. They may rise as the water gradually trickles down through the soil into the water table, into the aquifers. But there's still a large soil moisture deficit,” said Hoffman.
"Normally, we have had more rain over the summer so the reservoirs are in better shape. But it's not unusual, we have had droughts before."
He called Tuesday's rain a step in the right direction. But if we stay as dry as we have been through the fall and winter, some stricter drought actions could be implemented next spring.
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A watch is the first of three tiers of state drought advisories in New Jersey. A warning urges conservation, and an emergency puts mandatory water use restrictions into effect.
Pennsylvania remains under a drought watch as well. Officials in both states are asking for people to conserve water where they can.
The good news is with fall around the corner, pumpkin patches haven’t been drenched. As a South Jersey farm told us, that means less of a chance of picking a moldy pumpkin.
Mike DeNardo contributed to this report.
