Drought continues (despite rainy weather).
Despite recent heavy rains, Florida's drought conditions remain. WFIT’s Terri Wright tells us why.
Even with several inches of rain forecast through Thursday, much of the heavier downpours will flow into the Indian River Lagoon and stormwater ponds, as designed.
Florida is still experiencing its worst drought in 25 years, and brief periods of rain are not enough to reverse it. It typically takes weeks of steady, near-normal rainfall to improve drought conditions. Despite recent showers, wildfire risk in Brevard County remains high, with federal forecasters warning that “dry” lightning could ignite trees and brush weakened by February’s record cold snap.
Megan Borowski of the Florida Public Radio Emergency Network says the risk of local flooding continues:
“Rounds of heavy rain could dump several more inches of rainfall generally along and east of the I-95 corridor today. Add that on top of what we got yesterday, and we could see additional local flooding. Winds will also stay stiff today, with gusts over 30 mph. So high seas, rough surf, and beach erosion will also continue to be issues today.”
Blinker works - check the horn.
It’s day eight of the Artemis II flight. Today the astronauts will check the steering of the Orion spacecraft. The crew will steer the spacecraft to test Orion’s manual piloting capability. They will also will build a shelter in the spacecraft to assess their ability to protect themselves from solar flares and other high-radiation events in deep space.
Do you have a question for the Artemis II astronauts. You may be able to ask it. US Rep Mike Haridopolos is collecting questions that might be posed during a live call with the crew tomorrow. Post your question at haridopolos.house.gov. The Indian Harbour Beach Republican chairs the House Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics.
Brevard Commissioner Delaney resigns.
Brevard County Commissioner Katie Delaney announced yesterday that she's resigning next month, citing a "life-changing" opportunity. Delaney was elected to the county commission in November of 2024 as an outsider candidate. In other commission news, a measure was approved that will prohibit Brevard County from providing financial incentives to AI data centers.
Redistricting special session is still on.
Gov. Ron DeSantis has previously said that one of the reasons why Florida must conduct an unusual mid-decade congressional redistricting this year is because the state would likely be “forced” into compliance with an expected U.S. Supreme Court ruling. That legal opinion has yet to be issued by the court, and likely won’t be by the time the Legislature reconvenes in Tallahassee on April 20. That’s when the weeklong special session devoted to redistricting begins. DeSantis said Monday there are other legitimate reasons to go forward with redrawing the congressional maps, beginning with the fact that the state’s districts should be updated to more accurately reflect the growth in population over the past five years. Polls show that Floridians oppose the effort. More than 56% of likely Florida voters think it’s a “bad idea.”
Keep it in the family.
Hopefully you won’t be upset by this news: In a press conference yesterday, Gov. DeSantis spoke out against first cousins marrying each other. There’s currently a state law that permits it. He said that’s not consistent with US culture.
