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Hydrologist: Rain Expected This Weekend Won't End Maine's Drought

PORTLAND, Maine - Maine is getting some much-needed rain today and tomorrow - but it's not going to make a big difference in the drought.

Almost 70 percent of Maine is now in a drought that's affecting about 1.2 million people. Of those, many who use shallow dug wells for their water supply are finding those wells drying up.  That's especially true in southern Maine where the drought is worst.

National Weather Service hydrologist Tom Hawley says the 1-to-2.5 inches of rain expected between now and Sunday morning aren't going to provide the kind of groundwater replenishment those wells would need.

"Places that get two-and-a-half inches may see some response in the groundwater, but it takes a lot longer for groundwater to respond than it does for surface water," Hawley says. "Of course, with the rivers you'll see a pretty quick response; the groundwater may take several days to several weeks before you'll see a response in the groundwater."

Hawley says after this, the weather will likely turn dry again; and he says the several months of higher-than-normal precipitation it would take to end the drought doesn't seem to be in the cards.

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Nora is originally from the Boston area but has lived in Chicago, Michigan, New York City and at the northern tip of New York state. Nora began working in public radio at Michigan Radio in Ann Arbor and has been an on-air host, a reporter, a digital editor, a producer, and, when they let her, played records.