It wasn't your imagination: May was the fifth wettest on record in NJ
With all the rain that May provided, New Jersey reservoirs that supply drinking water to residents have been almost completely restored, said David Robinson, a Rutgers professor and the state climatologist.
New Jersey is nearly out of its drought period and has sufficient reservoir levels for the hotter summer months ahead — and more rain is expected in the next few days.
'The Department of Environmental Protection is still cautious about this, and they have still retained the state in a drought warning primarily because the groundwater is being slow to respond, particularly in South Jersey,' Robinson said.Fall 2024 was the driest in the state dating back to 1895, when records were first kept. New Jersey had not only the driest October on record, but it was the driest of any month in the state since 1895, Robinson said.
The lack of precipitation in the fall and winter months were the result of patterns of precipitation in New England and around the Great Lakes that were just missing New Jersey as they passed by, Robinson said.
Coastal storms such as Nor'easters are also sources of moisture for the area, but they didn't come until April and May when the pattern shifted.
La Niña, a storm pattern in the Pacific Ocean, is possibly a reason other coastal storms were irregular due to sea surface temperatures, atmospheric pressure and wind patterns changing, Robinson said.
'A lot of what we are talking about here and what happened in May, that's just weather patterns that are associated with the day-to-day fluctuations in circulation,' Robinson said. 'That's what makes it so difficult to unravel all of this and explain all of this.'
North Jersey reservoir levels dropped to nearly 20% below average between the months of January and March, according to data from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection. In April and May, those reservoirs' water levels shot up to about 10% above average.
For instance, the three reservoirs operated by Veolia along the Hackensack River in Bergen County — the Oradell Reservoir, Lake Tappan and Woodcliff Lake — had dropped to just above 50% of capacity by February, and well below the historical average for that time of year. By the end of May, they had rebounded to 100% capacity.
The reservoirs rely on winter to supply them with water in time for the summer, Robinson said. The just-below normal precipitation in spring slightly reduced the statewide drought, but the large amounts of rain in May were able to replenish the reservoirs.
'We should always be careful with our use of water, because New Jersey's freshwater supplies are quite finite, and they can change pretty quickly,' Robinson said. 'With just a couple of hot, dry months, we could be back into a worrisome position again. The indicators are that we won't, but better to be careful.'
The area will get more rain in the next few days with stronger showers the evening of June 6 and lighter showers the evening of June 7, according to the National Weather Service.
July and August are also generally the wettest months of the year, so a drought in New Jersey this summer is not likely, Robinson said.
'Patterns become more local or regional during the summer, so it's hard to get a grasp on just what's going to unfold,' he said. 'However, there is some indication that this summer will lean toward the normal to somewhat above normal precipitation pattern.'
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: May 2025 was 5th wettest on record in NJ, as reservoirs rebound
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