Drought Alert

The U.S. experienced its worst spring drought on record last month. The dry conditions have caused alarm among farmers, from wheat growers in Kansas to vegetable producers in Georgia. The drought could have a severe impact on major agricultural crops.

Virginia farmer Billy Bain has been planting crops for 58 years. He told CBS News in April that this year is the worst drought he has seen. “We had to stop planting because it’s so dry,” Bain said.

Wheat farmers across the Great Plains saw critical planting weeks affected by drought. As a result, the U.S. Department of Agriculture expects wheat planting this year to reach its lowest level since 1919.

Drought has also fueled wildfires, even in wetland environments such as the Florida Everglades. Wildfires have burned 120,000 acres in Florida already this year. According to NASA, this drought “is the most widespread and severe to affect the state since 2012.”

FUELED BY DROUGHT On May 11, firefighters battle a wildfire that’s burned nearly 6,000 acres in Pembroke Pines, Florida.

Wildfires also burned across southeast Georgia in late April. A state of emergency was declared in 91 counties there. This allowed the state’s National Guard to fight the fires. On May 7, the Georgia Forestry Commission responded to no new wildfires. It was the first day with no new fires since December.

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