The northeastern United States received copious amounts of precipitation from the four nor’easters that blasted the region this month. Much of the rest of the country, however, has been parched.

According to the latest report from the U.S. Drought Monitor, 31% of the nation is dealing with some form of drought. While this number represents a slight improvement for California, the situation in the southern plains and the southwest has been getting worse. Parts of the Texas Panhandle, western Oklahoma and southwestern Kansas are in exceptional drought, the worst possible category.

Drought conditions have also been building in parts of the southeast. In Florida, according to the state’s Forest Service, dry conditions have fueled more than 1000 wildfires across the peninsula since the beginning of the year.

The US Drought Monitor is a weekly publication produced by a partnership of government agencies, including the National Drought Mitigation Center, the United States Department of Agriculture, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Credit: US Drought Monitor