In April, the least precipitation was recorded in the south-western part of the country that received less than 10 percent of normal precipitation, which contributed to the formation of the meteorological drought, the meteorologists said.
“If precipitation remains low in the first decade of May, the meteorological drought will cover a bigger area and, if low precipitation continues during the second decade, we may face a drought disaster,” a press release from the service quoted Viktorija Maciulyte, a climatologist, as saying.
According to the meteorologists, the shortage of precipitation had been recorded in Lithuania from the third decade of March when precipitation measured at various meteorological stations fell to 37 percent of the normal level.
The beginning of April was somewhat wetter and precipitation reached 96 percent of its normal level. However, it plunged to 19 percent of the normal rate in the last decade of last month.
Given the lack of snow cover last winter, the country might face a hydrological drought if precipitation remained low, Maciulyte warned.
The Lithuanian government last year declared a national emergency over drought. In April 2019, precipitation in the country was well below normal, too.