Extreme Drought Lingers In Melrose Area Despite Rain: Drought Monitor

MELROSE, MA — Heavy rains earlier this week eased drought conditions across much of Massachusetts, the U.S. Drought Monitor said in a drought update on Thursday.

The good news didn’t spread all the way into Eastern Massachusetts, however, leaving Melrose and just under 9% of the state still under “extreme drought” conditions, according to the Drought Monitor.

A difficult summer with little rainfall has prompted some communities across the state to implement water restrictions.

Melrose, which draws its water through the regional Massachusetts Water Resources Authority, has been spared those restrictions to date, as the authority has managed to maintain “normal” water levels in its key reservoirs in Central Massachusetts despite the drought.

While not facing water restrictions, though, Melrose residents have heard repeated warnings this summer of increased fire danger due to dry soil and vegetation in area habitats.

That danger manifested recently when roughly 80 acres of the Breakheart Reservation in Saugus burned beginning last month, according to Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) estimates. The fires sent smoke over Melrose at times and continued to smolder underground in some places even after the DCR announced a partial reopening of the reservation last week.

It would take several days of rainfall to completely extinguish those hotspots, DCR officials said.

In the meantime, the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority has still recommended that all users practice water conservation measures when possible.

Though not enough to pull Melrose out of its extreme drought, rain this past weekend was a welcome sight for many, bringing massive rainfall to parts of Rhode Island and Connecticut while also dropping steady rain through Central Massachusetts and some areas north of Boston.

One weather spotter report from the National Weather Service on Tuesday measured at least .79 inches of rain in Melrose as of 7 a.m.

The forecast is now clear through the weekend, with no more rain predicted until Monday, according to Accuweather.