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53 °F Forecast | Road Cams Friday, May 6, 2005 Today's News | Shop Our Valley | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery | Contact Us SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Health Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley SHOP OUR VALLEY AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Classified Place an ad TOP JOBS EXTRA Ashland News NIE Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Moving here? eSouthernOregon CUSTOMER SERVICE FAQ's Advertise with us Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend April 28, 2005 Angela Derby was caught Wednesday in a sudden downpour in Medford as she raced with her baby, Aiden and son, Baily, 2, across the WinCo parking lot. Recent precipitation west of the Oregon Cascades has reduced the likelihood of a dought declaration here. Mail Tribune / Bob Pennell Rain puts damper on statewide drought But 11 of Oregon’s 36 counties could still be considered in trouble From wire and staff reports SALEM — Recent rains have reduced the chances that Gov. Ted Kulongoski will declare a statewide drought emergency, state climatologist George Taylor said. "The whole state is really looking better, with April rainfall well above average in many places" Taylor said Tuesday. "Reservoir levels on the west side are up, although Eastern Oregon is still facing water supply shortages." Torrential thunderstorms Wednesday in Southern Oregon made drought seem like a remote abstraction, but for the winter just ended the mountain snowpack was barely 50 percent of normal across the Rogue and Umpqua basins. Melting snow provides the water to fill streams and irrigation canals during the long dry summer. Medford’s precipitation for the 12-month period beginning Sept. 1, 2004 stood at 13.94 inches before Wednesday’s storm, about 90 percent of the normal average through April 27. The shortages east of the Cascades led the Oregon Drought Council on Tuesday to recommend that Kulongoski issue drought emergencies in Wheeler, Deschutes and Lake counties. If the governor follows through, 11 of Oregon’s 36 counties would be considered in a drought. Earlier this month, Kulongoski declared drought status in six counties: Hood River, Sherman, Gilliam, Morrow, Crook and Umatilla. In March, he had declared emergencies in Baker and Klamath counties. The designations provide "flexible water management tools to irrigators, municipalities and other water users, not generally available under Oregon law." A statewide drought would allow farmers to tap emergency wells and authorize the state to limit non-essential use of water. A wet weather system drenched many parts of the state last weekend, Taylor said. After three months of below-average rainfall, Redmond received 1.28 inches of rain Friday through Monday — about a quarter-inch less than fell in all of January, February and March. Six weeks of above-average rainfall in the Willamette River Basin has brought five reservoirs to normal or above-normal levels, officials said, improving the outlook for fish migration, irrigation, power generation and recreation this spring and summer. But Andy Bryant, a hydrologist for the National Weather Service in Portland, said spring rains can’t completely erase the winter snow deficit. "We continue to emphasize, especially for eastern parts of the state, that water shortages in most Central and Eastern Oregon basins are likely," Bryant said. Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback Free Music Downloads Conference Calls - $50/Month Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker, Trunk, Footlockers home equity loans helzberg diamonds Distance Education Diamonds Paris Hilton Online Poker Auto Insurance Mesothelioma Slippers Student Loans Tatoo tcg student loan consolidation teleconferencing Website Design & Marketing Memory Foam Mattress w2 forms Tatoos Mortgage Calculator Free Home-Loan Referrals Payday Loans Advertisement s