Tropical Storm Fay brings end to drought

Lots of rain was the one prediction that came true with Tropical Storm Fay, which marks the end of a drought that has lasted all of 2008.

Eastern Charlotte and Lee counties will see 3 to 5 inches of rain by the time Fay is over the Atlantic, helping to saturate the ground and replenish surface water.

A July punctuated by numerous thunderstorms and scattered showers helped bring South and Southwest Florida out of drought, but rain from the tropical storm will help keep drought at bay across the Peninsula.

"Tropical systems are more beneficial because they cover a wider area of precipitation," said Mike Cantin, meteorologist for the National Weather Service office in Ruskin. "That's part of the reason we got in a drought in the first place. The last few seasons have been fairly quiet."

While drought conditions are over, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor, the amount of rain that has fallen on the region since Jan. 1 is still below average, Cantin said.

Southwest Florida will need to see a lot more Fays before rainfall totals for the year inch back to normal. The rain gauges in Fort Myers shows a 5-inch rainfall deficit for the year; the gage at the Sarasota-Bradenton Airport shows an 11-inch deficit.

"We're going to need a couple more of these to make a huge dent," Cantin said.

Sarasota and Manatee will not see as much rain from the storm as Charlotte and Lee, but there's a big chance that this region has not seen the last of Fay.

Fay is expected to turn back toward northern Florida after a short stay in the Atlantic Ocean. As the system moves west across the state, it is expected to dump rain on the Panhandle, but it is predicted to also bring more thunderstorms and showers to Southwest Florida, Cantin said.