Waves of torrential rainfall drenched California into the new year. Snowpacks in the Sierra Nevada Mountains have swelled to more than 200 percent their normal size, and snowfall across the rest of the Colorado River Basin is trending above average, too.
While the much-needed water has improved conditions in the parched West, experts warn against claiming victory. About 60 percent of the region remains in some form of drought, continuing a decades-long spiral into water scarcity.
