00:00Utah has been unusually wet for three and a half months, yet it's still in drought.
00:04The U.S. Drought Monitor shows more than 90% of the state remains in drought.
00:10About 13.5% is in extreme drought.
00:13In one week, the share in severe or worse drought dropped from 62% to 51%.
00:18Mountain sites have collected over 12 inches of rain since mid-July.
00:23That's about 4 inches more than usual for that stretch.
00:26Mountain soils are now at record wetness for the fall season.
00:29So why hasn't the drought ended?
00:31It's because snow, not rain, supplies about 95% of Utah's water.
00:36Rain runs off faster than reservoirs can store it, and reservoirs barely refilled this year.
00:42Last winter's snowpack was about half of normal, the worst on record.
00:46Experts point to a strong snowpack as the best way out, so all eyes now turn to this winter's snow.
00:52Disclosure. This video contains stock footage and content created or enhanced using AI-assisted tools.
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