Little snow could bring drought, fires

HUNTINGTON, Mass. (WWLP) - For the second February in a row, western Massachusetts doesn't have much snow left on the ground.

"I really hate it. If it's going to be so cold then we might as well have the courtesy of snow," said Matthias Smith of Greenfield.

In the hilltown of Huntington  snow is normally easy to find this time of year. But this year there are a only a few inches left on the ground, much less than there was last week.

"Prior to last weeks rain storm and snow melt we were actually running about 130-140 percent above normal for snow pack and water content," said Tom Wisnauckas a Park Ranger in Huntington.

Since last weeks warm-up, the snow pack is now below average.

While western Massachusetts is not considered to be in a drought now, that could change.

Rain and snowmelt in the ground is important to preventing water restrictions as well as drought, but moisture and snow at the surface could also help prevent fires.

After a dry winter last year, brush fires were a real concern in the spring and summer. Frequent brush fires could be repeated again this year without a consistent snow pack.

But not everyone is worried.

"It doesn't really matter. We already had snow last week so we keep on getting snow so I don't think there's anything to worry about," said Joe Gillespie of Northampton.

We can get accumulating snow through April. Keep in mind, the lower the snow pack, the lower our risk for spring flooding.