Ohio’s drought keeps getting worse.
Rain has been limited throughout North Central Ohio since the middle of summer, and 87 of the state’s 88 counties are listed as dry.
The U.S. Drought Monitor breaks counties into one of five intensity rankings, from D0 Abnormally Dry to D4 Exceptional Drought.
Portions of Richland, Crawford, Marion, Ashland, Wayne, Holmes, Morrow and Knox counties had all reached the D2 Severe Drought designation with the drought monitor’s Oct. 9 update.
Gauges at Mansfield Lahm Regional Airport have collected about an inch less precipitation than normal so far this autumn, according to Alexa Maines, a meteorologist who works in the Cleveland office of the National Weather Service.
“We’re at 3.21 inches of rain since September 1,” Maines said. “Anything below normal, especially an inch or more, can be impactful.”
Drought has threatened crop yields
Drought was far from anyone’s mind in July when the Mansfield area received 1.49 inches more rain than average.
But then August came and had 1.64 inches less precipitation than expected, and September faltered by another 1.35 inches.
Several counties were under a D3 Extreme Drought and 87 of Ohio’s 88 counties were listed as having some level of dryness when the U.S. Drought Monitor updated its map Oct. 9.
The dry spell arrived at a crucial point in the state’s growing season, according to Ryan Matthews, director of communications and media relations for Ohio Farm Bureau.
“With these dry conditions, we’re going to see much smaller yields,” Matthews said. “Those early rains were good, but not enough to take Ohio out of drought conditions. Hopefully, farmers still have a successful and safe harvest.”
October is looking better, thanks to a storm that brought 1.2 inches of rain to North Central Ohio.
“All of this occurred in one day,” Maines said. “For the whole month, that puts us just over a quarter of an inch above normal for precipitation.”
‘They’ve barely gotten any rainfall’
Richland County may be in a drought, but meteorologists say things could always be worse.
“The Mansfield area is actually in better shape than a lot of the state,” Maines said.
At least 17 counties around the Buckeye State are under a D3 Extreme Drought, the second-highest dryness rating available.
Ohio’s worst drought conditions are in the northwest portion of the state, where weather service gauges have only collected about 25% the expected rainfall since summer.
“That’s the most widespread it’s ever been since the drought monitor started in 2000, so it’s pretty significant,” Maines said. “They’ve barely gotten any rainfall over the last month.”
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‘Minimal chances of rain’
The hope now is that more rain will fall across the region the rest of the year.
That dream might not come true, at least for a while.
Leaves float atop the Olentangy River as it trickles through the bed of its headwaters in North Central Ohio on Oct. 9, 2025.
“Through the next week or so, at least for the Mansfield area, there are minimal chances of rain,” Maines said. “Unfortunately, that includes areas that are northwest of you that are in really bad shape.”
The rest of October is “leaning towards below-normal precipitation,” models suggest.
Longer projections for the rest of the year are not very definitive.
“For October, November and December, it looks like the outlook is leaning towards above-normal temperatures, but there isn’t really a clear signature for precipitation amounts,” Maines said. “It could go either way.”
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This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Ohio drought may continue with ‘minimal chances of rain’ in forecast
