Monitor: Drought ends in nearly one-fourth of California
SAN FRANCISCO — A heavy dousing of autumn rain in Northern California has lifted a quarter of the state out of drought, the highest percentage in more than three years, according to a new federal report Thursday.
Water officials who oversaw mandatory water conservation by cities and towns emphasized three-fourths of the state remains in the five-year drought.
“Droughts are like recessions. Recovery from a recession doesn’t happen overnight; recovery from a drought doesn’t happen overnight,” said Max Gomberg of the state Water Resources Control Board.
October brought heavy rains in Northern California, including the second-wettest October on record for the northern Sierras, the source for much of the state’s water.