The U.S. Drought Monitor has most of eastern South Dakota and parts of Minnesota, Iowa, and Nebraska within an ‘abnormally dry’ zone. South Dakota state climatologist, Dennis Todey, says it’s due to the lack of moisture during the fall.

Todey says the rain event and freezing precipitation that covered the area last week could’ve helped ground moisture levels because of warmer temperatures the week before.

He says that rain probably made only a small impact on changing the overall dry conditions, and he expects the ‘abnormally dry’ condition to continue a while longer.