Drought in New York, July 1 to 31, 2002

Name: Drought in New York, July 1 to 31, 2002
Start: 2002-07-01T00:00
End: 2002-07-31T23:59
Location: New York

July 1 to 31, 2002 · NWS OKX · 15 events in 15 counties and zones

After an encouraging 4 month period of increased rainfall and improved drought conditions, the region experienced a disappointing setback during July. Rainfall during July was well below normal.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 13 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

Tornadoes
Tropical storms and surge
Floods
Wind
Hail
Winter weather
Heat and drought
Cold
Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 15

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 OKX wrote it up.

After an encouraging 4 month period of increased rainfall and improved drought conditions, the region experienced a disappointing setback during July. Rainfall during July was well below normal. The Brookhaven Hydrologic Service Area (HSA) received 1.62 inches of rain, which was 41 percent of normal or 2.33 inches below normal. If there was a "bright" spot, rainfall was slightly higher across New York City's Croton and Catskill Watersheds, which averaged 60 to 70 percent of normal.At the end of July, a majority of the streams monitored in real time by the U. S. Geological Survey in New York, were classified as having streamflows below normal.The combined storage in the New York City reservoir system on July 31st was 80.2 percent capacity, which was 10.3 percent below normal. Capacities in the individual reservoirs on July 31st were: Croton System 89.1% (Percent capacity)Roundout Reservoir 97.3%Ashokan Reservoir 76.9%Schoharie Reservoir 53.9%Cannonsville Reservoir 75.0%Pepcaton Reservoir 79.5%Neversink Reservoir 76.4%The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation extended the Drought Warning for Long Island, New York City, Rockland and Westchester Counties through July 31st. The Drought Watch for Orange and Putnam Counties was also extended through July 31st.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS New York, NY wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jun 30, 8:15 PM EST, 3 hours 45 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jun 30, 8:15 PM EST, 3 hours 45 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NEW YORK NY
915 PM EDT SUN JUN 30 2002

BEING THREATENED BY ST FROM OFF SRN ENGLAND. SOME MOVED ACRS ERN
SUFFOLK BUT DISSIPATED. ATTM ITS JUST SKIMMING MTP AND IS ACRS RI
WITH GON CT REPORTING CLR. WNDS ARE SLY AND WL BCM MORE SW OVRNIGHT.
WL CONT WITH P/CLDY. TEMPS IN BALLPARK. SEE NO REASON TO RMV SLIGHT
CHC POPS INLAND. REST OF FSCT ON TRACK...NO CHANGES. SO WL LET ZONES
RIDE.

MARINE...AMENDED EARLIER FOR WRN COASTAL WATERS...SANDY HOOK TO FIRE
ISLAND INET...WHERE SEA BREEZE STRONGER.

********PREVIOUS DISCUSSION FROM 2:50 PM****************************

TRICKY FORECAST THIS AFTERNOON. MODEL MAIN FEATURES ARE CLOSE NEXT
48 TO 60 HOURS.

ALL MODELS INCLUDING THREE OPERATIONAL ETA...NGM AND AVN MODELS
OUTPUT SCATTERED CONVECTION LATER TONIGHT. WE LOOKED AT RUC THROUGH
03Z AND LOCAL SUSB 12KM MM5 MODEL AND THEY ALSO ARE PICKING UP ON
CONVECTION THAT DEVELOPS THIS EVENING WELL TO OUR NORTH AND TRACKS IT
SOUTH ACROSS PORTIONS OF THE FORECAST AREA. WE THINK IT IS PICKING
UP ON IMPULSE MOVING ACROSS GRTLKS REGION ALONG WITH A SLIGHT
RETROGRESSION OF UPPER LOW EAST OF MAINE. COLD CLOUD TOPS SEEN
ROTATING SOUTHWARD ACROSS ME AND TOWARD NH/VT. WITH ALL THE ABOVE IN
MIND...WE WILL INCLUDE A 20 POP AT THIS TIME AND WILL HAVE TO KEEP
AN EYE ON THIS POSSIBILITY LATER ON. POP FORECAST WILL STAY TO THE
NORTH. HOPEFULLY THE ETA MOS CATEGORICAL FORECAST DOES NOT PAN OUT.

ON MONDAY...THE INSTABILITY INCREASES AND LOOKING AT ETA
PROFILES...A CAPE CLOSE TO 1000 J/KG IS NOTED. AGAIN...ANY BOUNDARY
COULD POP A TSTM LATE IN THE DAY SO WILL INCLUDE.

MORE OF THE SAME FOR TUESDAY. THIS DAY LOOKS TO BE THE HOTTEST AND
IF WINDS BECOME WEST...MANY LOCATIONS COULD SEE MID 90S. HUMIDITY
LEVELS WILL ALSO BE INCREASING WITH HEAT INDICES TOPPING 100 ACROSS
PORTIONS OF THE CWA. HEAT ADVISORIES MAY BE NEEDED FOR URBAN AREAS
DOWN THE ROAD.

TAKING AT LOOK AT AVN RUN THROUGH 120 HOUR...I SEE SOME DIFFERENCES.
ULTIMATELY THE FORECAST WILL NOT NEED TO BE CHANGED MUCH. IT LOOKS
LIKE UPPER RIDGE ESTABLISHES ITSELF AND KEEPS THE WESTERLIES ALONG
CANADIAN BORDER. I THOUGHT THE NEXT TROUGH WOULD DIG FURTHER AND
BRING COOLER AIR IN HERE THURSDAY AND FRIDAY ON A NORTHERLY FLOW.
INSTEAD...CHANCE POPS AT BEST WITH A MUCH WEAKER FRONT ON WEDNESDAY.
THEN THURSDAY AND FRIDAY SEEM TO DRY OUT SLIGHTLY...BUT WINDS WILL
BE RATHER LIGHT. WILL KEEP EXTENDED DRY AT THIS POINT...BUT UPPER
TROUGH DOES NOT DIG ACROSS NORTHEAST UNTIL FRIDAY.

MARINE...NO FLAGS NEEDED NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS.

*********************************************************************

.OKX...
CT...NONE.
NJ...NONE.
NY...NONE.
MARINE...NONE.

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

15 drought. Local standard time, as filed.

Drought, Northeast Suffolk

When: July 1, 12:00 AM EST to July 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Northeast Suffolk forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 40.941, -72.685 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Southeast Suffolk

When: July 1, 12:00 AM EST to July 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Southeast Suffolk forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 40.941, -72.685 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Southwest Suffolk

When: July 1, 12:00 AM EST to July 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Southwest Suffolk forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 40.941, -72.685 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Northwest Suffolk

When: July 1, 12:00 AM EST to July 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Northwest Suffolk forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 40.941, -72.685 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Nassau

When: July 1, 12:00 AM EST to July 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Nassau forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY

Drought, Queens

When: July 1, 12:00 AM EST to July 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Queens forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY

Drought, Richmond (Staten Is.)

When: July 1, 12:00 AM EST to July 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Richmond (Staten Is.) forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 40.583, -74.150 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Kings (Brooklyn)

When: July 1, 12:00 AM EST to July 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Kings (Brooklyn) forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 40.634, -73.950 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, New York (Manhattan)

When: July 1, 12:00 AM EST to July 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: New York (Manhattan) forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 40.774, -73.970 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Bronx

When: July 1, 12:00 AM EST to July 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Bronx forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 40.827, -73.924 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Rockland

When: July 1, 12:00 AM EST to July 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Rockland forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 41.152, -74.024 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Southern Westchester

When: July 1, 12:00 AM EST to July 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Southern Westchester forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 41.152, -73.753 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Northern Westchester

When: July 1, 12:00 AM EST to July 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Northern Westchester forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 41.152, -73.753 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Putnam

When: July 1, 12:00 AM EST to July 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Putnam forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 41.427, -73.749 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Orange

When: July 1, 12:00 AM EST to July 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Orange forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 41.402, -74.306 (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

Every storm in New York in 2002 Every state in 2002 This day in weather history Warnings in New York, July 2002

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: 5320620, 5320621, 5320622, 5320623, 5320624, 5320625, 5320626, 5320627, 5320628, 5320629, 5320630, 5320631, 5320632, 5320633, 5320634.