Maryland, 1998

Drought in Maryland, August 31, 1998

August 31, 1998 · NWS PHI · 5 events in 5 counties and zones

Unseasonably dry weather continued to take its toll on crops across the Delmarva Peninsula during the month of August. On a county weighted monthly average, Cecil, Kent and Queen Anne's Counties received only about 60 percent of the normal rainfall with the driest conditions (around half of normal rainfall) in Kent County.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 5 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
5

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS PHI wrote it up.

Unseasonably dry weather continued to take its toll on crops across the Delmarva Peninsula during the month of August. On a county weighted monthly average, Cecil, Kent and Queen Anne's Counties received only about 60 percent of the normal rainfall with the driest conditions (around half of normal rainfall) in Kent County. Monthly rainfall totals in Caroline and Talbot Counties averaged around 1.5 inches above normal aided by the locally heavy rain on the 10th and precipitation from Bonnie on the 28th. In spite of this, the largest crop losses across the Maryland Eastern Shore are expected to occur in Caroline and Talbot Counties. Talbot County is expected to lose between 30 and 40 percent of the planted corn crops and between 10 and 20 percent of the soybean crop. Elsewhere across the Eastern Shore corn crop losses are expected to be as high as 30 percent and soybean crop losses up to 10 percent.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

5 drought. Local standard time, as filed.

Drought, Caroline

When
August 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Caroline forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates
38.872, -75.832 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Cecil

When
August 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Cecil forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates
39.562, -75.948 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Kent

When
August 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Kent forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates
39.236, -76.096 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Queen Annes

When
August 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Queen Annes forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates
39.038, -76.085 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Talbot

When
August 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Talbot forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates
38.749, -76.179 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Drought
A drought reaching severe (D2) or worse on the US Drought Monitor, or with notable impacts.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Maryland in 1998Every state in 1998This day in weather historyWarnings in Maryland, August 1998

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5668198, 5668199, 5668200, 5668201, 5668202.