Denver metro in 'severe drought' as 2.2 million Coloradans face 'abnormally dry' conditions

The drought situation in Colorado has eased up a bit over the last couple of weeks, with 52.79 percent of the state now considered to be 'abnormally dry' or in a phase of technical drought as of August 20, according to the US Drought Monitor . Of that 52.79 percent, just 8.27 percent of the state is categorized as one of the four states of drought, with most of that area considered to be experiencing the least serious first stage.

While over half of the state is still suffering from dryness with about 2.2 million of the state's residents living in the impacted area, this is a significant drop from the 66 percent of the state that fell under these same conditions just two weeks ago. It is, however, worth noting that Denver County is one of the places considered to be in the more serious 'severe drought' phase, which encompasses just 1.16 percent of the state and is the second of four drought stages in terms of severity.

Heavy monsoonal rain has been falling around Colorado on a regular basis throughout August, which has helped the drought situation. That said, all of that rain has also caused big problems, particularly in the southwestern part of the state. Various mountain passes have been closed and a local county declared an 'emergency disaster' after mudflow hit homes .

It's also worth noting that Colorado's current level of dryness is significantly higher than it was at the same point last year, when just 30.39 percent of the state was considered to be 'abnormally dry' or worse.

As far as the next few months go, the National Weather Service is calling for the likelihood of drier-than-normal and hotter-than-normal conditions in Colorado through October, which could essentially erase the effects of a few rainy weeks.

Explore more information on drought in Colorado here .

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