Dry Winter Sets New Record In Washington State

SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — Washington's winter snowpack set a new record low for the month of April, setting the stage for low water supplies and perhaps more devastating wildfires later this year.

The Natural Resources Conservation Service says the April 1 report found the statewide winter snowpack at only 22 percent of normal, shattering the previous record of 33 percent of normal set in 2005.

The Cedar River basin was snow free, followed closely by the Olympics at only 3 percent of the 30-year median for April 1. That's the lowest ever recorded in both basins.

The Methow River Basin reported the highest at 79 percent of normal for April 1.

Western Washington basins were 44 percent of normal.

Snowpack along the eastern slopes of the Cascade Range was 24 percent of normal.